Of Pride and Absolution
by Guyute24
Summary: InuYYH crossover: When past and present collide, the future is anything but certain. KagxYus SanxHiei No, your eyes do not deceive you, chapter 14 really is up.
1. Default Chapter

A/N: This is my first attempt at a fanfic, and I really hope you all enjoy it. It is a crossover between Inuyasha and Yu Yu Hakusho, and I'm trying to make the initial encounter and character interaction as believable as possible, so PLEASE read and review—your opinions are important to me, and it really helps to know if I'm reaching the audience or not. Constructive criticism is always welcome. However, be advised, I'm going to be taking a bit of poetic license with this as well—meaning, there will be at least one alternate pairing (if not more). So, hard-core canon advocates you have been officially warned! With that said, many thanks to those who read, I hope you enjoy! 

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or Yu Yu Hakusho.

**Chapter One**

An uncommon stillness settled over the darkened streets of Tokyo, as though the only remnants of life were the flickering of streetlights and the stifling odor of industrial success. The oppressive city air hung thick and humid—the weight of it magnified by the grisly summer heat and the absence of moonlight that would normally permeate the, now unrelenting, black of night. No bustle of nighttime stragglers, no subtle breeze rustling boughs. Nothing. Nothing, save for the unremitting sound of silence.

However, the foreboding calm and heavy anticipation soon crumbled under the weight of a violent disturbance. A shriek—horrendous and blood curdling—ricocheted off of buildings and streets, and pierced the thick of the air with its intensity. Strained and ragged, it rang out into the night as the culmination of pain, terror, and utter despair.

Seconds later, she tore out from the wooded area, stumbling and frantic, desperately fleeing the writhing mass of evil pursuing her. She was only vaguely aware of her surroundings, unable to acknowledge anything but the feeling of her feet hitting the ground in a flat run, the pounding of her heart in her chest, and the echo of a gut wrenching scream in her head. She had no idea where it was she was going and no inclination of exactly what she was running from. She recognized only the sheer panic that coursed through her veins and drove her onward to where her legs instinctively took her—away from the unknown, but horrifying abomination that surely followed.

However, she faltered in her blind rush when a figure, engulfed in shadow, appeared on the edge of her vision and caught her attention. Though she couldn't make out most of its features, the halo of a nearby streetlamp managed to reveal a mass of dark hair and two large brown eyes—distant and calculating.

Although all other features were indistinct, she somehow knew it was a young boy tucked away in the shadows. She was certain she knew those eyes, and for some indiscernible reason, she was even more certain the boy behind them held the key to her salvation.

She stopped short at her recognition and made to change the direction of her frenzied escape. The boy tensed as she locked his gaze—determination clearly etched on her face. If she could only get to that boy…

She never saw the monster close the gap in her moment of hesitation. She never saw the clawed hand pierce through her back, and grip the heart in her chest. She never noticed the blood that replaced the half-formed scream in her mouth. She never noticed the words that died on her lips as she struggled to say his name.

She didn't have her life flash before her eyes, and she didn't count the infinite regrets and what ifs. She only vaguely regarded the lonely eyes before her, and the distant, heart-wrenching cry of a lone wolf as it echoed in her ears.

The darkness consumed her.

Kagome awoke with a start, sitting straight up in her bed before she could even open her pale blue-grey eyes to take in her surroundings. Her heart pounded in her chest, and she fought to choke down the scream that hung in her throat as she realized she was, in fact, in her own room at the sunset shrine. She clutched her chest with one hand as she brought the other to run through her hair.

"A dream—nothing more," she whispered unevenly and tried to steady her breathing and nerves.

She sighed audibly as she worked her way out from under the sheets twisted by her thrashing and stood to move toward her window. Sliding it open, she took her place on the windowsill and looked out over the grounds. Her eyes searched the dark in a strange anticipation that she, herself, could not explain. Her gaze fixed on the old well house at the edge of her vision, and she waited.

She waited. For what, she couldn't say, but it was as she always did after such dreams. She snorted at her own actions. It hadn't been the first time this particular dream plagued her, and she was fairly certain it wouldn't be the last. Yet, as often as it had occurred in the last year and a half, she simply couldn't get used to it. Each time was slightly more terrifying than the last, and each time the dream seemed to unravel a little more.

In the beginning, it had merely been a brief flash of images of her running, without sound or feeling. However, it had steadily grown, and each time she'd attempt to pick through the fragments to gain some sort of understanding, but the attempts were futile. She never seemed to be able to discern what exactly she was running from or whom the boy was that she desperately sought.

After a time, she had begun to avoid sleep. Not that the dream had been the only cause, though. No, her discontent ran much deeper than a few nightmares.

By all outward appearances she was a normal 17-year-old girl. She attended school, went out with friends, and even dated a few boys. Something was missing, though. She had known it for at least a year, maybe longer. She had felt it—a cold restlessness that had settled within her soul—an emptiness that had taken root in her being and forced her to feel foreign in her own skin. Always waiting—the victim of a cruel, insatiable anticipation.

After several minutes she wrenched her gaze away from the well house and turned back to her room. She couldn't explain why she was so drawn to it, but she knew there was something special about that well. She'd been to it several times in the last few months, hoping to uncover something, _anything_ that would explain what she was feeling. She'd even gone so far as to climb in the damned thing, but sadly, she found nothing.

Sighing heavily, she closed the window and wandered back to her bed, resigning herself to attempt sleep once again. Through half-lidded eyes she absently acknowledged the lack of moonlight and shuddered under her sheets. Gods, she hated the new moon…

It had never occurred to her to wonder why.

* * *

A cloaked figure approached the tumultuous crossroad that separated the existence of all things in quiet determination. Its movements were cautious and precise as it paused at the edge of the great barrier and tossed a quick glance over its shoulder. The light of the coming dawn played across facial features just on the brink of masculinity with a soft grey illumination as the cloak stirred in his movement.

Turning back swiftly, he focused his attention to the mass of energy obstructing his path. He studied it carefully, scrutinizing every inch of the wall within his vision, before he narrowed his eyes and fixed his gaze to one particular spot.

'There,' he thought, 'right there' as his line of sight revealed a tiny trace of foreign energy, so miniscule that only those who knew of it could possibly be able to find it. Only a fine, dim line, it appeared relatively inconspicuous—harmless really. However, it was there, nonetheless—a weakness in the barrier.

He sighed heavily and reached into the pouch concealed by his earthen cloak and wrapped his fingers around its contents. As though strengthening his resolve, he drew in a deep breath and extended a closed fist toward the location of the disturbance and pushed through. He met no resistance.

Quickly, he let out the breath he'd been holding and withdrew his hand from the wall, loosening his grip along the way and bringing his open palm back to where he could look closely at the charm he'd been holding.

'Yes, I believe this will work nicely,' he thought as the ghost of a smirk appeared on his lips, while he regarded the talisman in his hand. A strange looking charm to be certain, it was nothing more than a flat, dull, silver disc, threaded through so it may be worn, and adorned with symbols of the old script, denoting a concealment spell of sorts.

It seemed nothing special, but had it been a fake, the impurity of it would have most certainly reacted with the magic contained in the divide and repelled it. He really wasn't certain of where it had come from, but his instincts had told him he would need it—and in the end, instinct was really all he had.

It was instinct, after all, that had sustained him throughout the years and dictated his every action. It was instinct that had carried him through the hells of his existence and brought him, now, to stand at the barrier between worlds. It was instinct that drove him to push through that barrier.

He held no notions of what he may find on the other side, nor did he care—he was incapable of such things. The most basic components and machinations of a sentient being were elusive to him, at best. Emotion and physical sensation simply did not exist within his depths. With no past recollection and no clear future, he was a creature without beginning or end—an animated hollow, apathy bound to undying flesh hardened by centuries of vagrancy. Yes, even the privilege of death proved unattainable. He simply…was.

He didn't even have a name.

No, these luxuries were not bestowed upon the damned. _Instinct _was the only thing afforded him.

Lifting his gaze from the talisman, he cast another look back over his shoulder and held it, as though anticipating a response from the fleeting darkness. In reply, small figure emerged from the perimeter of shadow and sauntered up beside him on four tiny feet. He knelt as the creature approached and without words slipped the talisman around its neck.

Absently, he drew a hand back to the pouch that previously housed the charm and felt it for the only other object, save for weaponry, in his possession. Asserting its presence, he lifted the tiny being, securing the animal into his arms and stood facing the great divide once again.

Without delay, he stepped forward and disappeared from view as a veil of brilliant white luminescence enveloped him.

* * *

So, how did I do? Drop a line and let me know. I know the intro may seem vague, but all will be clear in due time. Thanks so much to those who read; I'll try to get an update out for you within the week. And don't worry, the spirit detectives will be making an entrance in the next chapter! 


	2. Chapter Two

**A/N: Many thanks to those of you who reviewed! I'm not sure this is going where I had originally intended, but I think I can make it work. I think I should let you all know I'm really not very familiar with Yu Yu Hakusho, so if I get way too far off on characterization someone please let me know! I'm operating under the assumption that no one can pass through the barrier between worlds without permission or knowing exactly where the rift is located (if there is one—hey, poetic license people!). Anyway, tell me what you think, I'm always open to suggestions. Thanks for reading and please review!  
**

_Lost-forgotten-alone: I'm glad you liked it, even if Kagome isn't your favorite. I think I should tell you though, I'm totally a sympathizer to your cause—so if you'll hang with me, I think you'll be pleased with what comes of this fic (hopefully). _

_Ryukotsusei: Thanks for the review, I'm glad you like it._

_Anoresne: Thanks for the encouragement. I know it starts a little slow, but hopefully I can make up for it from now on._

_**Chapter Two**_

"What is it now, toddler?!" Yusuke demanded as he flopped down into a defenseless chair in Koenma's office. "I thought I was supposed to get some time off this week!"

"Suck it up Urameshi, you don't see me complaining!"

"Can it, Kuwabara!" Yusuke growled. He really wasn't in the mood to listen to Kuwabara praise himself at the moment.

Kurama cleared his throat in an attempt to diffuse the oncoming argument before it got started. He could sense Koenma's apprehension from the moment he arrived and thought it unwise to irritate the Reikai prince. Something was definitely off about the situation—the child leader's face and body were taught with tension (more so than usual) and he absently wrung his hands. If his body language were any indication, the next mission would most likely be unpleasant, at best.

"You can it, Urameshi," Kuwabara began, "I could've been with—"

"Let me guess," Yusuke rudely interjected, "the lovely Yukina! Yada yada—baka!"

Kurama scowled a little as his subtle effort to silence his companions proved futile, and the argument ensued. It came as no surprise, though. He would have been more shocked had they actually caught on to his hint. 'They really are childish sometimes' he thought, as the dispute dwindled from statements, to one-word insults. He cleared his throat once again, about to intervene when a much louder, much angrier voice stepped in.

"ENOUGH!" Koenma yelled in a voice laced heavily with annoyance and exhaustion. Silence filled the room as the pint-sized prince fixed the two offenders with his most intimidating glare. His expression softened somewhat as he turned slightly to see Kurama's eyebrows raise in question, and the flinch of a very concerned ferry girl. Returning his gaze to Yusuke and Kuwabara, in a tone much more subdued, he continued, "I didn't bring you here to listen to you bicker."

"Oh yeah, why are we here?" Yusuke questioned, his eyes flashing with previously forgotten knowledge when he realized that they were, in fact, in spirit world. Generally, he would receive his missions through Botan, or even by way of communicator—seldom did Koenma actually bring them to the Reikai to issue his orders.

"This," the young sovereign stated, as he extended a hand out to the ogre at his side and took the file offered to him. He unceremoniously flung the package into Kurama's lap and continued on as the kitsune flipped through its contents, "In the last three days we've received several reports of a human boy wandering the Makai."

"A human? Are you sure, I mean, how did he get there?" Yusuke asked, his voice revealed his skepticism.

"We're sure," he replied coolly as he pressed a small button and nodded toward the image that appeared on screen before them. "Though we aren't certain of how he managed to cross the barrier unnoticed—the kind of energy required for such a task would have been detectable in powering up."

"So that's him—but he's just a kid!" Kuwabara exclaimed looking at the shadowed features of the boy on display. He was young, that much could be determined from his size alone, though his face told a different story. His expression was weary, and his eyes seemed to embody the fine line between the treacherous duality of life and death. Kuwabara shuddered unconsciously, "He is kinda freaky, though."

"Freaky or not, no way did some kid just wander into—" Yusuke began only to be cut off by a previously quiet kitsune.

"Perhaps he didn't." Kurama paused as Yusuke turned a questioning glance in his direction and then turned his attention back to Koenma. "Is this all you have?"

"Unfortunately," Koenma sighed and brought his hands up to rub his temples, practically broadcasting his unease with the situation. "No name, no age, and no history—it's almost as though he didn't exist until three days ago. We didn't even have an image until this morning."

"Wait a minute, if that isn't his file, what is it?" Yusuke gestured toward the folder in Kurama's hand, clearly confused and little miffed at having been interrupted. "And just what do you mean by '_perhaps he didn't'?_"

Kurama closed the folder and passed it on to Yusuke. "It's a list indicating each date, time, location, and circumstance where the boy appeared," Kurama informed them as Yusuke skimmed through the pages, and Kuwabara leaned in, reading over his shoulder. "Look at the dates and locations. The earliest accounts begin three days ago at the edge of the eastern realm. Notice, he isn't spotted in the areas surrounding the barrier until almost two and half days later."

"So?" Kuwabara questioned, feeling rather lost at the moment.

"The area of the eastern lands where he was first sighted lies at a considerable distance from the barrier separating the Makai from the Ningenkai," Kurama paused, allowing a moment for his words to sink in, "As the earliest accounts begin much further away than they end, it seems reasonable to assume that he's not heading deeper into the demon realm, but rather, back toward the human world."

"So if he's leaving, and it took him three whole days to get this far, it should've taken him a good while to get out there no matter where he came in from," Yusuke pondered, confusion still evident in his voice. "But then, if he's stirred up all this commotion just on the way out, why didn't anyone see him when he came in…unless…"

Kurama smiled slightly as Yusuke picked up on his train of thought. "Precisely."

"Huh? Unless what?!" Kuwabara was now completely lost.

"Unless, he didn't enter demon world through the barrier," Kurama replied and cocked an eyebrow at the suddenly quiet spirit prince. "He was already there."

Koenma squirmed slightly at the thought, though it was nothing he hadn't realized already. He really didn't like the idea that a human could manage to exist in the demon world without his knowledge, and this was most certainly going to be nothing but trouble—especially if the human turned out to be who he thought it might. He groaned inwardly and hoped he was wrong.

But if he wasn't? He had to be, though—wrong that is. It was just a legend, a ridiculous youkai myth, right? Undead human boys simply did not roam the demon world for hundreds of years unnoticed, he asserted himself. No, there had to be a reasonable explanation for everything…

"_Koenma…"_

So why was he so worried? His face scrunched unconsciously when he thought of his father.

"_Earth to Koenma…Sir…?"_

Gods, his father would murder him for sure if he'd let this one slip. His stomach twisted up when he realized the gravity of the situation. Supposing the legends were true, he may have just caused one hell of a mess by dismissing them as folklore. Damn it! He should have known better, there was no such thing as _folklore_ where demon world was concerned! No, no—it wasn't true, so it didn't matter—there was no undead boy, and there most certainly was no Shikon no Tama! Why should he worry?

"YO TODDLER!!" Koenma snapped out of his introspection and physically jerked when he heard Yusuke's, oh so lovable, term of endearment. He suddenly realized all eyes were on him, and he had absolutely no idea what was going on. Huh? Oh hell, had they been talking to him?

"What?" Koenma tried to brush his inattention off casually.

"What's with you anyway?" Yusuke continued, not really wanting to know, "So, what do you want us to do with this kid?"

"Find him and bring back here to me. You may as well start looking in the Ningenkai, I have a feeling by now he's made it across the divide."

"Right--" Yusuke drawled out, "this kid won't be easy to find with nothing to go on but an idea of how he looks. Maybe we should get Hiei for this?" The temperamental demon was the best tracker he knew, and they could definitely use his help. Not to mention that he wanted to get this over with quickly so he could enjoy at least _some_ time off.

"Oh yeah, where is shorty anyway?" Kuwabara questioned, just now realizing the fire apparition hadn't been present. Not that anyone really expected him to be there. Who would have told him after all? A person didn't just go out and find Hiei unless he was indifferent to the notion of being found. No, you didn't find Hiei—Hiei found you.

"He's…indisposed at the moment," Koenma replied vaguely, not really wanting to tell them that out of paranoia he'd sent him to the Makai to dig up dirt on the youkai equivalent of a ghost story.

"Indi-wha?" Kuwabara looked a little confused.

"He's busy," Kurama supplied. His brow furrowed when he realized that the Reikai prince had no intention of disclosing any more information than that, and he wondered what exactly Hiei was doing for Koenma without them.

"Take this with you," Koenma said, a little hurriedly, as he handed a printout of the boy's image to Yusuke. He wanted them out before any more questions could be raised. "Now, go—I want this thing wrapped up quickly."

"Alright, alright—don't get your diaper in a wad," Yusuke mumbled on his way through the portal Botan provided. It wasn't until then he'd even noticed her presence. She had been unusually quiet during the meeting, and Yusuke was beginning to wonder if she knew something they didn't. Needless to say, he had a bad feeling about this.

* * *

He was close now, he knew. The force that guided him to stir from his virtual solitude was drawing him near, like a moth to a flame—he was consumed by it.

* * *

The twin-tailed fire neko watched him from a safe distance, just as she always had, while he drifted through the alleys and streets of this strange new world. She decided almost immediately that she had much rather be in her own realm, as this one smelled particularly foul in her opinion. However, she would never—_never_—willingly desert her 'companion'. She had resigned herself, loyally—perhaps foolishly, to his side though he was not her master. He hadn't been in over five centuries, and until they had crossed the great divide, when he took her into his arms, it had been at least that long since he had even acknowledged her presence. Yet, still, she was drawn to shadow his movements—protect him if she must, and so she had.

It was a lonely path she'd chosen, but she wouldn't have it any other way. She was certain he knew she followed him, but never did they offer companionship to one another, and she was glad for it. It had not been his fault, that much she knew, but her distance was a necessary evil. She could not allow herself to feel an emotional bond with the pitiable creature he had become; to do so would condone his cursed half-life, and in her complacency, condemn him to remain the abomination hiding behind his face.

Giving up was simply not an option.

No, he was not her master—he was fiction, but she'd follow him just the same. Besides, she had nowhere else to go.

* * *

Hiei stood silent a moment, letting his senses test the atmosphere, before ascending the mountain pass on the edge of the eastern territories. His investigation had pointed him in the direction of a tribe of wolf youkai rumored to have had a rather unpleasant encounter with the rouge ningen. He scowled at the thought of having to deal with the wolf demons and cursed Koenma for what must have been the thousandth time since he began his excursion, for putting him in such a position.

He despised wolf demons almost as much as he did humans—they were a crude, obnoxious bunch, possessing no real skill in combat, and very little intelligence—in his opinion, quite undeserving of the youkai blood in their veins. Yet here he was, practically scaling the side of a mountain in pursuit of them.

He made short work of the rocky stretch, bounding over crevices and boulders with ease as he moved toward his destination with preternatural speed and agility. Once at the top, he immediately closed in on the large cavern that served as the tribe's den. He made no attempt to creep in unnoticed, as they had most likely sensed his approach. They may be stupid, but didn't mean they were nose-blind.

He stopped short as the breeze shifted slightly and brought the unmistakable stench of death to his sensitive nose. It was recent, he determined, and though there was bloodshed, it had not been a massacre—fighting amongst themselves most likely, Hiei sneered at the notion. "Hn. Fools," he muttered.

Typically, he would have cared less, but this had been his most legitimate lead, and the only one said to have actually made contact with the ningen. Hiei narrowed his eyes in annoyance and gripped the hilt of his katana, preparing himself for whatever may be waiting to greet him beyond the cave's entrance. Cautiously, he continued on.

He had not been expecting this…unsettling quiet…in the den of wolves. A heated confrontation, he could have seen. Hell, he would have enjoyed it. The wolf youkai were easily provoked into violence, and he would have likely pushed them into an all out brawl, not that he wouldn't have been alright with that. Hiei liked nothing better than a good fight, and if he had to suffer through one with a lesser demon, well, he would have been alright with that, too.

No confrontation awaited him, though. As a matter of fact nothing awaited him, and the unusual calm was a bit unnerving to the fire apparition. No, he had not expected this at all.

He stepped silently into the growing shadows of the wolf demon den, letting the gradual blanket of darkness sweep over him completely as he drew further and further from the entrance. The eerie silence seemed to cling to the sound of his intruding footfalls and the rhythmic intake of breath in his chest. He could have been stealthier, but there was really no point. They were gone—he was almost certain of it.

He came to a halt when the darkened passage he had been traveling split in to three separate, dimly lit, corridors that he could only assume wound deeper into the mountain. He had to confess a bit of surprise at the depth and precision of the wolf lair. It was a virtual labyrinth, a home unusually overdeveloped for this kind of demon. He didn't trust it, not one bit. Reluctantly, Hiei closed his crimson eyes and removed his bandana, letting the jagan probe the stony channels in search of life.

His lids snapped open and he secured the bandana back in its place with a rough yank, before continuing down the far left tunnel. Someone was here, he was sure of it. It was time for some answers—surely whatever had occurred between the wolf tribe and the boy couldn't have been serious enough to drive an entire pack away from the den, could it? Hiei pondered thoughtfully how a human boy could have managed to survive an altercation with a pack of _any_ youkai. It just didn't add up.

As the passage Hiei traveled on opened into a large chamber, two figures—one stretched out carefully on a bed of wood and flame, the other knelt at his side, head bowed in silent respect—came into view. He paused at the entrance, and chose to wait for the living demon to stand and face him before pressing him for answers.

"Come in fire apparition." His voice was deep and melancholy, but remained steady as he spoke. He stood slowly, a long rust colored braid slipping from his shoulder to his back as he did so, and coming to rest just above a rather…bushy…tail. He turned, revealing a lean, well-defined form adorned in the plain attire of a nomad. His jaw was set and his green eyes thoughtful, as he fixed his attention toward the demon in question. "I've been expecting you."

Hiei gave no immediate response but unconsciously moved further into the room as he pinned the stranger under piercing red-eyed scrutiny. He had sensed something oddly familiar before the demon had been fully exposed to his vision, and his eyes widened unnoticeably as his suspicions were confirmed. "What business has a kitsune in the den of wolves?"

"I am…_was_…a steward to the wolf prince, Kouga. This is my home," he replied a little despondently. He had no intention of discussing the true nature of his relationship with the wolf youkai clan, or its prince.

Hiei shot an incredulous glare at the fox. Somehow he highly doubted the wolf prince would tolerate a kitsune in the pack, servant or no. "Hn. Do you honestly expect me to believe you? Wolf youkai are not the most tolerant of beings, they'd have sooner stripped the flesh from your bones than taken you in."

"You know nothing of it," he sneered.

"You presume too much if you think I would want to," Hiei countered, becoming bored with the situation. "I have other concerns at the moment." He frowned inwardly when his gaze caught the funeral pyre. Unfortunately, it seemed there were no wolves left to question. Not that he cared to anyway. Interrogation seemed a waste of time to him—he had much more _effective_ ways of extracting information (bloodshed was always a plus for him), and if needs be, he could always resort to his telepathic abilities and avoid speaking all together.

However, at the moment the kitsune was making this difficult, his mind was much more disciplined than Hiei had originally given him credit for.

"I assume you are here about the boy." The fox demon glanced back unconsciously to the body of the fallen prince behind him and sighed. He really hated to pin such a nasty rumor on the boy, but it had to be done. True, the boy had not touched Kouga _or_ his mate and children, but he simply could not allow Kouga's memory to be thought of dishonorably. He almost choked at the thought. No—better they die by another; it was best for the clan—best for him. He only hoped the fact that the boy had managed to survive in the demon realm at all would make the rumor seem plausible.

Of course at the time he had no idea exactly who he'd blamed for their deaths. The whisperings of a human presence had been convenient for his purposes. Yet, the more he learned about this human the more frighteningly familiar the boy became. He had to be certain—it was just pure dumb luck on his part for the spirit world to get involved. If he could get to Koenma, he could get to the boy, and he knew just how to do it.

"Tell me, did the Reikai prince send you?" The fox demon smirked, already knowing the answer. "Really, I was rather surprised to learn that the infamous forbidden child had gone to work for the prince of the spirit realm."

"My motives are none of your concern," he spat. Although his face retained its reticent mask he was livid from the kitsune's taunting of his damnable servitude. He was suddenly glad his telepathic abilities would not suffice—oh yes, this was definitely a situation that called for bloodshed. He fingered the hilt of his katana, almost playfully, in warning. "It isn't wise to play games with me, kitsune." His tone was dangerously malicious. "Tell me what you know—I won't ask again."

"You didn't ask in the first place. Though I feel I should tell you, it isn't in your best interests to kill me." He reached quickly into the neckline of his top when Hiei drew his katana, and pulled out what appeared to be a tiny bottle on a chain around his neck. He held it away from his body, letting the firelight reveal the tiny sliver of a jewel inside. "I'm sure you've heard of the Shikon no Tama?"

Hiei nearly dropped his sword. He had most definitely heard of the fabled jewel—what youkai hadn't? But what did that have to do with anything? If it was ever even real it had been destroyed 500 years ago, hadn't it? "Hn. Legend, nothing more."

"Are you so sure?" He absently fingered the bottle around his neck. "Perhaps a demonstration is in order." The fox demon scanned the cavern until a slight movement in the crevice between two large boulders caught his attention. Swiftly, he closed the gap and snatched the tiny green lizard, now desperately trying to escape, from his haven. Holding the lizard by its tail in one hand he unsealed the bottle around his neck with the other and let the shard fall into his palm. Whispering a quick apology to the lizard, he slipped the fragment into the reptile's back, just up under its skin.

Hiei watched in utter amazement (though his features gave no indication) as the animal grew to roughly ten times its previous size and took on some rather vicious characteristics. The kit dropped the disgruntled reptile when it took a snap at him with its newly acquired, very lengthy teeth. It remained a small animal, though, and as it scrambled toward the nearest exit the fox quickly ran it through with his dagger and returned the shard to its container.

"Talk, kitsune."

The kit couldn't help but smile at the fire apparition; he really was a demon of little patience. "You may call me Shippou, if you prefer. I'm really not one for formalities," said Shippou in a half chuckle. Hiei gave him a particularly steely glare, and Shippou sighed. The next few days would be very long indeed.

* * *

Kurama sighed as the sun began to set over the city. They had been walking around Tokyo all day, hitting every source they could think of, and flashing the boy's picture to damn near everyone they met—this was definitely not their most discreet investigation, but they were beginning to get desperate. Still, they had nothing, and he was really more than a little irritated with Koenma for not giving them any more to go on.

And he had more, Kurama could tell. His brow furrowed at the notion. It wasn't like Koenma to hide things from them, and he couldn't decide if he should be concerned for the Reikai prince or angry with him for leaving them so unprepared. He hated feeling unprepared. Sure, he was quick to adapt to almost any situation, as were most of his teammates, but without time to develop a proper strategy things could get messy—people could get hurt.

Yusuke was shaken from his own thoughts when he heard Kurama let out a heavy sigh. Yusuke snuck a glance at the troubled kitsune walking beside him. He had been quiet most of the day, not that he was an overly talkative demon anyway, but Yusuke could tell something was bothering him. In truth, he wasn't alone.

Yusuke knew just as well as Kurama that the toddler was hiding something, and what ever it was it wasn't good. He scowled, not even Botan had been any help. She hadn't said two words to them that morning, and then she just dropped them off without so much as a 'goodbye' or even a 'go to hell'. They had a lot of nerve pushing him into this blindly. "Damn them anyway," he muttered to himself.

"Pardon?" Kurama asked quietly.

"Nothing," came Yusuke's sulky reply. He would have liked to pick Kurama's brain about the whole mess, but to be honest he didn't want to bring Kuwabara's attention to his suspicion. The last thing he needed was to deal with a paranoid Kuwabara driving him nuts. He groaned inwardly, 'This whole situation just re—'

"—Umph!" His thought was immediately cut off. He shook his head in an attempt to focus as the source of impact stood up and brushed herself off. He hadn't even noticed when they rounded the corner, and apparently neither had she.

"Oh, excuse me! I'm so sorry, I wasn't paying attention," came the girl's hurried apology.

He didn't answer, but took a moment to look her over—now why couldn't Keiko's uniform be that short? He was answered with a quick jab to the ribs from Kuwabara who now stood beside him. "Jeez Urameshi! Watch where you're going! You could at least say you're…"

Kuwabara stopped cold and snapped his attention toward the raven-haired girl. His face scrunched in utter confusion, and she began to fidget under his scrutiny. "Oh, yeah, sorry" Yusuke's voice broke the quickly forming tension.

"No, it's okay—my fault," she said brushing past them. "Kagome, are you coming?!" The voice of another girl rang out from some distance ahead on the sidewalk. "Coming, Eri," she called and ran to catch up with her friend. 'Well, that was weird,' she thought.

Kuwabara continued to stare after the retreating girl, frozen in place. In all his time working with Yusuke he'd _never_ felt anything like that. It was so subtle he hadn't noticed it at first, and had he been anyone else he would have missed it altogether. The faintest hint of a powerful spirit energy lingered on the girl, more potent than any other spiritual energy he'd encountered but in such a tiny dose that it could barely sustain a physical being. It was virtually undetectable.

"Is something wrong, Kuwabara?" Kurama asked, beginning to get a little concerned.

Kuwabara finally snapped out of his self-induced trance, and without words he abruptly changed direction and followed after her.

"Just where the hell do you think you're going?" Yusuke called after him.

He didn't answer. He wouldn't be able to explain it if he tried. So, he just kept going.

Yusuke shouted again. "HEY! You can't just walk out in the middle of a—" Kurama's hand on his shoulder cut him off. "What?!"

"Over there," Kurama replied quietly and nodded his head in the direction of the city park. There, walking in the shadows of the wooded area, and heading in the very same direction as their wandering teammate, was a very familiar boy.

* * *

A/N: So there's chapter two. PLEASE R&R!! Your feedback and suggestions are greatly appreciated. Thanks for reading! Next time, the Inu-gang will be making their entrance—so hang on, things are about to take off. 


	3. Chapter Three

_A/N: Well, here it is chapter three. Truth be told, this was a really difficult chapter to write, and I'm not altogether happy with the result, so this will probably be up for a re-write as soon as I've had enough time to distance myself from it. Anyway, I'm having a little trouble deciding about pairings, so if you guys could let me know what you think in reviews it may influence my decision (no promises). This will most likely end up a Sango/Hiei pairing just because I think they have serious chemistry. Although, there just aren't many good Sango/Kurama fics out there, so who knows? If you guys are really good you may get a triangle, but you have to review and let me know something. Oh, and don't worry Kagome fans, she'll have her moments—I've got something worked out for her in particular. Many thanks to those who reviewed; I really appreciate it! Enjoy and please R&R!_

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**_Chapter Three _**

Kagome couldn't help but be a little unnerved by her experience with the orange haired boy. She felt silly to be so worked up over such a thing, but the look on his face was nothing less than complete shock, and for the life of her she couldn't figure out what she had done to cause his reaction. He seemed uncertain and almost…appalled at her? Yes, now that she thought about it, he had. As though she'd just suggested hiding razorblades in candy, and he couldn't decide whether or not she was serious. 'Hmph! Of all the nerve!' she thought as her unease slowly bled over to irritation.

"Kagome? Kagome, are you even listening to me?" Eri huffed when she realized that, once again, her friend had no idea she was talking to her.

"Huh? Oh, I'm sorry, Eri," Kagome said, shaking her head to bring herself back to reality. "I'm just a little tired," she offered in a half-hearted explanation. She had zoned out all together, forgetting her friend was even with her at the moment. "In fact, I think I'm just going to cut through the park."

"I don't know, Kagome," Eri said in a concerned tone. "It's getting late. You really shouldn't go that way by yourself."

"I'll be fine. If I hurry, I'll be home before it gets completely dark."

Eri sighed, knowing it was completely useless to argue with Kagome once she had set her mind to something. "Well, okay then. I guess I'll see you on Monday."

"See you then," Kagome replied cheerfully over her shoulder; she was already headed into the park. She normally wouldn't come through the area this close to dark, but she really was anxious to get home and could save a good ten minutes by coming this way.

She almost instantly regretted her decision, though, when she came upon the section of her route that took her past the woods and through a rather remote area of the park. Her body tensed and she hesitated a moment to continue on her path. 'Oh, stop being paranoid, Kagome' she inwardly berated herself before moving on twice as quickly as before, completely unaware of the two strangers shadowing her every move.

* * *

Koenma let out an exasperated sigh and shuffled through the endless stack of papers littering his desk. He'd been through countless scrolls—each giving a vague account of the legend of the Shikon no Tama and the great battle that saw to its end. In truth, they were of little help; there were simply too many discrepancies between texts and not enough detail to support any conclusion drawn from them. He couldn't even determine how the jewel had been destroyed. Of course that was _if_ it had been destroyed.

_If_—it had been the question rolling around in his mind since the boy had revealed himself. The implications were serious—if the child was sustained by a fragment of the Shikon Jewel, as the stories seemed to suggest, then the remainder of the jewel could not have been destroyed—not without rendering the missing fragments powerless.

The boy should be dead. So, where was rest of the Shikon no Tama?

Koenma groaned as a whole new list of problems emerged in his mind. "Sir?" Botan asked a little sheepishly from the other side of his desk. She was concerned about him, he could tell. "I'm fine Botan, really." He tried to sound convincing, but he knew he failed miserably. He normally wouldn't have bothered, but in truth, he felt bad for her. She had guilt written all over her face—it was a look wholly unsuited for her he decided, especially when it really wasn't her fault.

"This isn't your fault, Botan," he began, trying to ease her mind. "Things were different before the reform." He wasn't lying, Spirit World _had_ been different then; they were unorganized, understaffed, and entirely unprepared to deal with the continual warring of the time. Up until the forging of the great barrier and the Reikai reform movement occurred sometime toward the end of the feudal era, it had been quite difficult to keep track of the deceased.

"Does it matter? If I hadn't lost his soul to begin with, this may never have happened." Her tone was void of its usual cheer. "I was careless."

"We were all careless. Besides, we don't even know if it's him yet, so stop worrying."

True, they didn't know—she hadn't had the chance to see him before, in fact she'd missed him altogether. She hadn't even suspected until the stories began; the accounts were few—only three in the last 450 years—but they all shared a common thread. The exterminator child had been resurrected with a tainted Shikon jewel fragment, something that could not be done unless his soul was adrift in the first place. She wasn't stupid—she knew a lost soul when she saw one and when she saw his face (on screen) that morning there was no doubt left for her. She could feel it right down to her bones. That boy was neither living nor dead, and it was her fault.

Her feelings of guilt were only compounded now that her friends were involved. She looked thoughtful for a moment before responding in hushed tones. "We should have told them more. It isn't fair to send them out without knowing what they may be up against."

Koenma shook his head vigorously. "Do you have any idea what could happen if word got out that that kid may be in possession of a fragment of the Shikon Jewel? Every demon in Makai will be trying to snake their way into the human realm just to get their hands on that kid! In the best-case scenario, the Ningenkai is overrun in no time and we have a serious mess to clean up. And that's only if it turns out not to be true!" He shuddered unconsciously, not really wanting to think about what would happen if it _were_ true and the shard fell into the wrong hands, Sensui or Itsuki hands for instance. They wouldn't be satisfied with just a shard (as if that weren't bad enough), oh no, they'd not rest until they found the rest of the jewel, of that Koenma was certain. "No, this information stays between us, Botan. We can't risk that kind of damage until we know for certain, and if that means leaving Yusuke and the others in the dark, so be it!"

Botan flinched and Koenma instantly felt worse. He hadn't meant to sound so harsh, but his own culpability was weighing on his nerves and making him even more irritable than usual. He sighed heavily, and brought a hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose. "Why don't you check back in with Yusuke? I can handle things here."

"Are you sure?" She questioned, clearly not as convinced as he.

"Quite. Besides, he may need your help," he replied. "Oh, and Botan, remember what I said—not a word."

She nodded, her mouth set in a firm line and the sparkle of newfound determination flashed in her eyes as she exited his office. It didn't matter how she felt about his orders so long as she followed them. And she would. She would do whatever he asked of her, just as she always had. Only this time, she wasn't _about_ to let him down.

* * *

Kuwabara watched from a careful distance as the girl made her way through the park. He should have caught up to her by now, but somewhere along the way, he realized he had absolutely no idea of what he would say to her should he catch her. _Hi, I just so happen to get this tickle feeling every now and then that lets me sense the supernatural and I think the creepiest spiritual energy I've ever felt is sleeping inside you as we speak. _He may not be the smartest person in the world but he knew enough to know that that probably wouldn't do him any favors. So he opted for the safer route, follow her until something of importance occurred. He still wasn't sure why, he just knew that he should—even if it meant abandoning the mission for a moment and risking a thorough pounding when Urameshi got a hold of him.

Kuwabara was literally shaken from his thoughts when a firm hand grabbed hold of his shoulder and yanked him back roughly, causing him to spin and almost fall forward into the face of his assailant. 'Speak of the devil,' he thought, almost amusedly, despite the look of pure hostility on Yusuke's face.

"Idiot!" He hissed. "Just what the hell do you think you're doing!"

"I…uh…well—" he stammered unsuccessfully.

"Just shut up and come on," his words were dripping with venom as he wound a fistful of Kuwabara's shirt in his hand and jerked him in the direction of where he had parted ways with Kurama. He really didn't want to hear whatever lame-brained excuse Kuwabara surely had at this point. "We found the kid. Kurama's tailing him now."

Yusuke was more than a little surprised when Kuwabara firmly rooted his feet to the ground and jerked his upper body out of Yusuke's grasp. "I ain't going anywhere, Urameshi!"

"What the hell is wrong with you!" Yusuke was beyond annoyance—now he was just down right pissed off. "Didn't you hear me? I said we found the kid, now let's go!" He was already balling his fist, ready to knock Kuwabara cold. At least that way he could go help Kurama with the kid and not have to worry about his friend doing anything stupid while he was gone.

"I can't," he began only to see Yusuke's fist heading straight for his face. He dodged to the left, trying to spit out his excuse all the while. "You don't understand, Urameshi! There's something really freaky going on with that—" he stiffened and Yusuke froze in the middle of throwing Kuwabara a vicious right hook. Both heads snapped in the direction of the woods; the hair on Kuwabara's neck and arms stood on end, and he began to feel nauseous.

Yusuke had felt it too, though not as forcefully, and he suddenly found himself running as fast as his legs would take him to the disturbance. Kuwabara was right on his heels as they tore through the clearing. They stopped abruptly when they reached Kurama, whose typically cool and collected disposition had given way to obvious alarm—a side of himself very few had ever seen. He stood slack-jawed and wide-eyed, frozen in his tracks as he stared out at the scene unfolding before them. Yusuke gasped, equally stunned. He suddenly realized why Kuwabara had taken such an interest in that girl.

_**Moments before…**_

Kagome willed herself to continue onward, though warily. She jumped as the sound of angry voices infiltrated her ears. It came from behind her, and she decided the best course of action was to move quickly. She had no desire to be caught up in some sort of gang squabble, if that's what it was. She kept watch over her shoulder, and quickened her pace.

In her haste, she failed to see the figure that emerged from the shadows and settled directly in her path until she had very nearly barreled over it. "Oh, I'm so sorry, I—"

Her body went rigid and the words hung in her throat when she got a look at the boy's face. She _knew_ this boy. Though she wasn't entirely sure about his features, she could never forget those eyes—haunting, molten pools of liquid earth and fire, shrouded in a thick haze of turbulent indifference. A shiver ran up her spine. It was like staring straight into purgatory and altogether the most frightening sensation she had ever experienced.

Though her mind desperately pled with her body to turn away, she could not move or speak; her body had relinquished all control to the boy before her, the one that had plagued her dreams for so long. She felt the air around them turn cold as he studied her intently, as though she were a butterfly, pinned and wriggling. She tried frantically to look at something else, anything else as he scrutinized her—the abysmal unrest in his eyes had become unbearable.

Yet, she couldn't tear her gaze away from him. Something was tugging on the edge of her subliminal being, begging to be recognized, though she couldn't seem to put her finger on it. The boy was oddly familiar to her, more so than the encounters of her dreams, and for a moment she felt a little comfort in that—but she needed answers to the questions in her mind. Her mouth began to dangle upon the likeness of words, like a fish out of water, and slowly her vocal capabilities returned to her. "I…It's you" she finally stammered out, unable to form anything else.

He said nothing, but the look in his eyes told her all she needed to know—he recognized her as well. Suddenly, the tension and fear running amuck in her mind dissipated. She had seen the fleeting look of recognition play across his features and realized he had been searching for her; he needed her as much as she needed him. "Why?" she whispered, it was the one thing that made no sense to her at the moment.

As though in response, he reached one hand into his cloak and fished out a strange looking, opalescent sphere, letting it rest in the palm of his hand. He studied it a moment, eyes tracing the pattern of its flaws—there were pieces missing, and it had lost a great deal of its luster. Yet, for all of its surface scars, it had been his most prized possession. His only possession. The only thing in the last 500 years he'd felt compelled to protect. And now, he was just as compelled to offer it freely, extending it to her in silent invitation.

Kagome was instantly mesmerized, her entire being filled with an electrified anticipation, and the world around them vanished in her mind. She hadn't noticed her kitsune audience, nor would she notice his friends when they would arrive moments later, or the ferry girl shortly after that. Only two things existed for her in that moment. The stone, and her inexplicable and overwhelming urge to take it.

Ever so slowly, she reached out for it and gently wrapped slender fingers around it protectively, bringing it up to her face for a better look. She jumped as a soft luminescence splintered out from its cracks and played across her face. "It's beautiful," she whispered as the glow intensified in her grasp and enveloped her hand. Then suddenly, without warning, the gem dislodged itself from her clutches and shot toward the center of the clearing.

The wind picked up and emitted a low whine, and dark clouds gathered to block out the last of the evening light as the jewel began to spin faster and faster. Two streams of white luminescence seeped out from its confines and spiraled around Kagome, beginning at her feet and encompassing her completely. Her eyes widened in fear as the energy entered her, infiltrating her senses through every possible opening—mouth, nose, eyes, every pore of her skin filled with blinding light as the invading element coursed through her veins and purified her with torrents of white fire, burning her every fiber from the inside out. An inhuman shriek escaped her lips from the sheer force of it. Her body lifted from the ground and began to spin, mimicking the gem itself.

Then, the images came flooding in, filling up the gaps in her life with the knowledge of a past existence. Every second of every moment of her eternal being rushed, overloaded her senses and left her anesthetized as her soul re-adhered to her flesh.

Soon, the light dimmed, and her screams died with the wind. Slowly, she dropped to the ground, blissfully unconscious. The world was eerily still, and no one dared to break the silence that hung in the air. Just as the tension became unbearable a low rumble slipped into the clearing. The earth shook and a thunderous crack resonated through the trees as the jewel splintered, a black light and deep purple gas spilling out from its walls. The gas saturated the area with noxious fumes and a heavy fog that made it virtually impossible to see.

Kurama paled and did his best to cover nose and mouth with his sleeve when the poisonous scent drifted to his nostrils. The others had yet to notice. "It's poisonous," he coughed out as his eyes began to water. "We have to get them out of there."

Yusuke nodded and hung his shirt collar on his nose. "Right. Stay here I'll take care of this." However, just as he started to move forward a malicious laugh permeated the air. Botan gripped his arm firmly. "Wait, Yusuke—I think the fog is clearing."

She was right. The fumes began to dissipate, leaving only the heinous laughter on the wind. Kuwabara cringed, not wanting to know what exactly was behind the veil of smoke. Soon enough the wall cleared, revealing the most frightening demon he thought he'd ever seen.

In the middle of the clearing stood a writhing mass of tentacles—a horrendous and freakish abomination latched on to a humanoid body. He was bloody and disoriented, but still he laughed menacingly. The fact that he was the only one still conscious gave him enough of an upper hand to negate any doubts he may have had upon entering this strange world. His crimson eyes scanned the area and flickered a bit of disbelief at his surroundings, though his expression revealed nothing of his thoughts. Finally, his gaze traveled across the face of his barely conscious minion and then came to rest in his palm as he stared at the near complete jewel in his grasp. He smiled—outright smiled, as he realized his good fortune.

Kurama gasped at the sight. It wasn't the demon that surprised him, though. No, now there were three others in the field as well—another demon, and a teenage boy and girl by the looks of it, though the lingering smoke was making it difficult to see and smell them. If his nose was right though, they needed medical attention, and soon.

Yusuke whipped toward the ferry girl at his side. "Just what the hell is going on here, Botan! Spill it, I know you know something!"

"I…I…I don't under—I 'm not sure," she whimpered out, though he forgot the argument momentarily as the demon stalked his way over to the bodies that littered the ground. Yusuke slipped behind the demon still unaware of their presence and summoned the energy to attack should the demon make a move.

"Pathetic mortals, did you really think you could take me down? Honestly, Inuyasha, I thought even you would know better than to allow an untrained miko to attempt such a spell. Now look what it's gotten you." He made a clicking sound with his tongue and shook his head. "Such a pity to have to kill you all when you're not awake for me to enjoy it." He reached down about to grab a fistful of chestnut hair from the head of the battered girl clad in black when a voice from behind stopped him.

"SPIRIT GUN!"

He barely had time to register the impending threat to dodge. He wasn't quick enough. He spun and managed to move just enough to miss the brunt of the attack, but not fully. The tremendous blast caught half of his body, and in a wicked twist of fate, effectively shattered the Shikon jewel. Again.

The shockwave that followed drove them all to their knees as the fragments sprayed across the sky like tiny meteors skipping across the surface of the atmosphere. Dozens of miniscule pieces rained down, penetrating the barriers that separated human from demon, living from dead, destroying the threads of a fabricated reality and then mending them as though they were never snipped. The force of it was beautiful—an exquisite symphony of destruction and rebirth.

The earth stilled in its magnanimous wake.

Naraku grit his teeth and hissed in pain as he tried to collect himself from his place on the ground. He could smell his own charred flesh and decided then that his victory would, once again, have to wait for another day. Before anyone had time to react he snaked a tentacle around the boy and both disappeared in a thick cloud of poison miasma.

"Damn it!" Yusuke cursed loudly and threw clenched fists to the ground. He was completely confused at this point. How could he let that monster escape in to the human realm? With the kid no less! Injured or not, that thing was dangerous and he'd bet his life that they hadn't heard the last of him. "I just wish someone would tell me what the hell is going on—what the hell was that thing, Botan!"

Botan rose to her feet, ignoring the vertigo that accompanied her standing position. She wasn't sure how to answer him. "I don't know, but I have to get to Koenma. He needs to know about this."

"Bull shit!" Yusuke was furious at the mention of the child prince's name. It suddenly dawned on him that the boy they had been trailing was responsible for that…rock, gem, whatever it was that let the demon loose in the first place, and he was certain that Koenma hadn't been in the dark about it. "You can't tell me that damned toddler didn't know—"

"Perhaps this isn't the time, Yusuke," Kurama interjected. He was kneeling over the black clad female, checking her injuries as he had with the others. "These people need help, and if I'm not mistaken the police are on their way." His superior hearing had alerted him to the distant sirens closing in on them.

"Shit! What are we supposed to do with them?" Yusuke didn't like the idea of taking these people with him without knowing exactly who they were and whose side they were on, but by the looks of them he knew he couldn't very well leave them there, either.

"We could take them to Yukina," Kuwabara suggested while wrapping his arms around the tiny cat that had accompanied the boy protectively. "She could heal them, and maybe they'll know something about the demon."

"Kuwabara, that may be the smartest thing you've ever said," Yusuke replied. "C'mon, lets get out of here before the cops show up and things get messy." He hoisted the demon up over one shoulder and the girl he had run into earlier over the other and turned to Botan. "Get us to Genkai's shrine." The annoyance was still clear in his voice.

She opened a portal and ushered him through without question, not really wanting to try his patience any more than she already had. She waited as Kuwabara tossed the teenage boy onto his back, and Kurama carefully lifted the other girl into his arms, avoiding her injuries as best he could. They stepped through the portal, leaving no evidence of their confrontation, just as police began to swarm the area.

_A/N: Thanks for reading—don't forget to drop a review on your way out!_


	4. Chapter Four

**A/N: Many thanks to those who reviewed last time, I really appreciate the support. For those who are wondering about pairings, this is definitely a Sango/Hiei fic, though it's not going to happen overnight. This will be a building relationship, but don't worry—there will be plenty of other fluff and good ol' sexual tension in the meantime.  
**

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho or Inuyasha.

**_Chapter Four_**

Naraku winced as he settled at the base of a large tree in a remote area on the edge of the city. He peeled away the tattered remnants of his outer haori to assess the damage and grimaced when he realized it would take at least a week for his body to completely regenerate. "Damn," he muttered with growing discomfort. That human was definitely going to pay, just as soon as he was on his feet again. They would all pay if he had anything to do with it. He smiled wistfully. Oh yes, there was nothing so sweet as revenge, and he was going to make sure they all got a taste of his.

* * *

Hiei grumbled under his breath as he made his way back down the mountainside, a kitsune not too far behind him. Undoubtedly, it was going to take much longer for him to get back to Spirit world than it would have before, and the thought annoyed him even further, if that was possible. How had he let that stupid fox convince him to take him to Koenma? He shook his head, there was a time not long ago he would have simply killed the fox demon and been done with the whole mess. "I must be going soft," he muttered, thoroughly irritated at himself. 

He knew, though, that if he'd honestly had the tiniest shred of doubt, even the slightest inkling that the fox was lying to him, he wouldn't have hesitated to take his head. He was quite sure the kitsune knew this as well, and it helped to soothe his pride a little. Not that his pride hadn't taken several beatings as of late—Koenma being the cause of most of them.

He growled inwardly, he was _not_ thrilled with the child prince right now. He'd had his suspicions that Koenma was hiding something from the beginning. The pint-sized ruler _never_ sent Hiei to do the investigating, not unless he was desperate; Hiei's methods of obtaining information made him uneasy, to say the least. He wondered why Koenma had been so distressed as to send him out this time. Now he understood.

Hiei paused when he came to the edge of a rather steep embankment and waited for his traveling companion to catch up. He had been gauging the fox's abilities since they left the caverns. He wasn't anywhere near as fast as Hiei (but then again, who was?), but he was quite agile, and it appeared, not totally inept when it came to using his natural abilities to his advantage. Many times, he'd looked back to find a large, pink balloon hovering around some of the more difficult obstacles of the mountain—such was the case now. At least maybe he wouldn't be a complete nuisance. "It would benefit you to save some energy, kitsune. The youkai are restless in the marshlands, and we'll be coming upon them soon. I have no reservations against leaving you to them should you fall behind."

Shippou tensed, he had no doubt the fire apparition meant what he said. He really couldn't blame him, either. Hiei had been thrust into the middle of a very volatile situation against his will, and he was handling it remarkably well in Shippou's opinion. He couldn't help but be slightly irritated at the fire apparition's attitude, though. He was no weakling, Kouga had seen to that, and he'd be damned if he'd let anyone imply as such. "You worry about your own neck," Shippou snapped. "I can take care of myself."

"Hn." Hiei turned to continue on and spoke without looking back, "So long as we're clear."

Shippou gritted his teeth and said nothing, choosing not to pursue a full-blown argument with the irritable fire demon. He understood quite well that even though he had grown up to be a rather fierce youkai, he was still no match for Hiei. He had the mark on his neck to prove it, given courtesy of Hiei's katana when he had not gotten to the point quick enough to suit the fire apparition.

It was for this reason Shippou had opted to tell him the truth about his predicament, which included everything he knew of the boy, the Shikon no Tama, and a little of his recent acquisition of the shard he carried. Not that he really had a choice in the matter; Hiei would have sensed any deception, and Shippou really didn't have the time or energy to work his way around lies.

It had been a risk telling Hiei so much. His reputation preceded him, and Shippou was a little unsure whether or not the ambitious fire demon would use the knowledge to his own advantage. Any other demon with his abilities most certainly would, but it was a gamble Shippou was willing to take. Not that he had much of a choice about that, either.

It was only a matter of time before the demon community discovered what the child really was, and once that happened Kohaku wouldn't stand a chance. They would break him before it was all said and done, probe what was left of his mind for anything about that damned accursed jewel—Shippou wasn't about to let him suffer the same kind of hells he'd suffered under Naraku all over again.

Of course, things were decidedly different this time. Chances were Kohaku was already broken beyond all reason. If the 500 years he'd spent drifting Makai and the thorough mind raping he'd endured had not made it so, the plague in his back most certainly would have. Shippou shuddered unconsciously, he knew all too well what prolonged exposure to a tainted Shikon fragment could do to a person, he'd seen it first-hand.

He could still see it. In a thousand years he'd never forget it.

His hand clutched the bottle that hung around his neck and he cursed himself for not realizing the truth sooner. He should have suspected that it was more than just guilt eating away at Kouga. He should have seen that it wasn't just his mind drifting into madness; it was his soul as well. He should have felt the presence of the shard long before it had consumed the wolf prince.

But he didn't. And once again, he was alone.

Shippou sighed audibly. Somehow, he was always the one left to pick up the pieces, always the one left standing in the wake of destruction—always, _always_ the survivor. To say he was entirely grateful for it would have been a lie. He imagined Kohaku felt very much the same way.

It was a situation he planned to remedy very soon.

Shippou was knocked from his reverie when a crushing blow to the head sent him sprawling across the soggy marshland ground. Funny, he thought as he spit out the pulpy remnants of swamp that clung to his teeth, he hadn't even noticed they were there yet. He barely had time to register the feral snarl that split the air and the unmistakable glint of steel before he lifted his already swelling face from the ground and came nose to nose with his assailant. In this case, a rather vicious looking gorilla youkai.

Shippou scrambled backward and drew his blade, ready to strike when he realized the face he had come to know a little better than he would have liked was missing something very important—a body. He turned just in time to see a rather irritable fire demon sheathing his katana and sending him a particularly heated glare. "Thank you," he managed to spit out after a moment, more than a little surprised that Hiei had given him so much as a passing glance, much less saved him.

"I didn't do it for you, fox," Hiei snapped. "Don't mistake my intentions, the only concern I have is currently hanging around your neck."

Once again, Shippou had no doubt Hiei was telling the truth. He was suddenly glad he hadn't found a way to destroy the shard as he'd first intended; it had proven to be a valuable bargaining chip, he just hoped Koenma would think so, too.

He stood and brushed himself off. "Well, thanks all the same."

"Hn. Just look sharp. The youkai are on the move as of late, and we've more than a full days journey until we reach the Spirit Realm."

The implication was obvious—_Pay attention and quit fucking around, Shippou._ Okay, he could handle that. "Restless, huh? Is it possible they're drawn to the shard?"

"Perhaps." Hiei brought a hand up to rest at his chin and looked thoughtful for a moment. "Perhaps it's the presence of the boy. It is more than likely both."

Shippou's jaw set in determination when the possibility of other demons being drawn to Kohaku crossed his mind. "Well, let's not waste anymore time, then."

* * *

He was floating, suspended above consciousness and physical presence from the end of a spider's silk. Dangling from time and space like an insect trapped in amber, time did not pass with beginning or end, only sensation. It may have been only moments, it may have been years, either way it simply was, and he was warm, secure—somehow sublime. 

The feeling was fleeting, though, and he suddenly found his entire being rapidly descending. Falling from the spider's silk, the sensations that had encompassed him were quickly dissipating. He panicked but could not move as his being was hurled at a breakneck pace through the dark tunnels of space. Away from his protective womb.

A stark cold air stung his skin, and he lapsed into dark again. Then, there was nothing.

Slowly, sound trickled in through the shroud of numbness that enveloped Miroku's senses and tickled his awareness back to life. He felt hazy, and his head pounded mercilessly, making him nauseous and dizzy. His mind emerged from its stupor and etched over the possibilities of his situation. They had been fighting Naraku, and then…there was…light? _Am I dead?_

Another brief surge of pain ripped through his head and completely dispelled the notion. No, he would have to feel much better to die. But where was he? He felt the presence of someone next to him, and thought it best for the moment to remain still, at least until he could communicate.

Botan loomed over the injured monk with a look of mild curiosity written on her face. Such unusual people, she thought as she moved to change the bandage on his left arm. They certainly weren't from around their neck of the woods. She and Kurama had worked with Yukina for several hours to heal their wounds. Even as good as Yukina was they weren't able to completely heal them, though they were certain now that no one would die. As it was, though, they were all exhausted and taking turns keeping watch and changing bandages. She sighed. Whatever had gotten a hold of these people must have been particularly nasty to leave injuries as severe as theirs.

She froze when she felt the monk's muscles tense under her touch. Her eyes narrowed in speculation—was he awake? "Hey—"

Miroku couldn't help but notice something unique about the person standing over his prone form. He could feel the energy radiate something distinctly spiritual and somewhat…feminine? He smiled inwardly; yes there was no mistaking the feel of a lady.

If he had been in his right mind at all—had _any_ sense at all, he might have rethought the situation before doing what he did. As it was, he didn't, and just as she spoke he eased his free hand around to her backside and gave a light, experimental squeeze.

"EEP!" A surprised squeek slipped from Botan's mouth and the sound of a rather loud SMACK followed thereafter. "You, you…lecherous…you…ARGH!" Botan was stunned beyond all words. Here she was, tending to his wounds and he thinks he can just take advantage of her kindness. She deserved more respect than that. She was the grim reaper! She stood and flung his wounded arm from her lap as he sat up, opened his eyes, and brought a hand up to rub his now throbbing cheek.

"Forgive me my lady, I am but a humble monk." His voice was gravelly from disuse, and it took a moment before he could speak above a whisper. "You see I have this cursed hand that—"

"Humble monk my foot!" She was angry now, that much was clear. The pitch of her voice rose and she started to shake her index finger at him. "Do you have any idea who I am! I'm the Grim Reaper, buddy, and if you know what's good for you, you'll keep your hands to yourself!"

Miroku looked up at her mischievously and replied in his most silky and seductive voice. "My, my. If I had known death was a beautiful girl in a pink kimono, I may not have spent so much time avoiding it. Please forgive me my dear, I shall have to remember to stop breathing."

Botan fumed. Not only did he not believe her, but she also got the distinct impression that he was mocking her. Oh, he was going to wish he were never born when she got through with him. She brought a hand up to deliver another stinging blow when a voice from behind stopped her.

"Try not to kill him, Botan. We did just heal him." Kurama's voice held the faintest hint of a chuckle, and his startling green eyes danced with amusement.

Botan gave a very unladylike snort and crossed her arms. "Well, I'm glad you think it's funny, Kurama!"

Miroku gave his savior an appreciative look and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. She certainly was fiery. He smiled wistfully as he gingerly touched the scorching red mark on his face, she was entirely too much like a certain demon slayer he knew. Wait—demon slayer? The look of blissful remembrance bled over into an anxious grimace as his entire awareness returned to him. Where were his companions? Were they dead? Had they defeated Naraku? Where was he?

He suddenly felt dizzy, and he paled considerably. "Perhaps you shouldn't move around. You aren't exactly in the best condition," Kurama said with concern evident in his voice.

"Yes, you aren't looking, well. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have you so hard."

Miroku took a moment to regain his composure before speaking. "My companions," he began, his voice strained once again. "Are they alive?"

Kurama moved from the monk's field of vision to reveal three unconscious figures. Miroku let out a heavy sigh of relief. It was then he noticed something very peculiar about his surroundings. Each of his friends was sprawled out on what appeared to be strange elevated futons. So was he for that matter. His eyes scanned the room nervously, trying to get a feel for his new environment. Such a strange room—definitely not the typical hut or inn he was accustomed to. Eventually his gaze fixed on Kurama and he noticed the zipper on the front of his uniform jacket. Now where did that come from? He'd only seen such a strange device on Kagome's backpack, and suddenly realization dawned on him-he began toget an idea of just how far away from home they might actually be.

"What age is this?" He wasn't entirely sure, but he thought he was beginning to understand the seriousness of their situation.

Kurama smiled, very observant that one was. He had seen their style of dress and weaponry and concluded from the beginning that their guests were somehow from around the Warring States Era. Well, most of them, he still wasn't clear how an everyday schoolgirl could possibly tie in to all this, but he figured everything would come out soon enough. He had no intention of pushing the monk, or any of them, until it was absolutely necessary. His instincts told him they were going to need help from these people, and if that were true, he'd much rather gain their trust, first. "This is the year 1998, and you're in a shrine outside of Tokyo, Japan. We happened upon you and your friends quite by accident. Perhaps you would like to share your story, when you feel ready?"

Miroku nodded but didn't offer any more information; he didn't want to say anything until Kagome was awake. Hopefully she could shed some light on the situation. He stood on shaky legs and attempted to move toward his comrades before Botan offered her arm in support. He grinned and she shot him a glare that clearly said 'hands off'. He sighed. _Oh well, a guy's got to try, doesn't he?_

His brow furrowed when he came closer to his friends—someone was missing. "There was a child and a nekomata. Where are they?"

Botan and Kurama shared a questioning glance when he mentioned a fire cat—clearly he was no stranger to demons, but before either could answer the door flung open and the neko in question plowed straight into the recovering monk, nearly knocking him over in his fragile state. "Kirara?" He stammered, as she nuzzled him affectionately. He held her up to get a good look and was taken aback by her appearance. Her aura felt very familiar, but she looked just like an everyday domestic cat—one tail and all. "What happened, Kirara?"

She mewled in response and leapt from his arms to the windowsill, letting the light reflect on the medallion around her neck. Now, he understood. He reached over and removed the talisman, revealing her true form to the occupants of the room. "Where did you get this?" It was slightly familiar to him, though at the moment he couldn't place it.

"I take it she's a friend of yours?" Miroku turned to see a boy about his age, with slick black hair and dangerous eyes, leaning against the doorway with his arms crossed over his chest. He was covered in tiny bandages.

"How long have you been listening, Yusuke?" Botan began but then gasped when she noticed his arms. "Kami," she breathed, "what happened to you!"

He grumbled under his breath and sent a menacing glare to Kirara. "Long enough to see demon hell kitty really is a demon hell kitty! That fur ball damn near ate me alive! She wouldn't let anyone but Kuwabara near her, and she really didn't want anyone in here with these three. So guess who gets the honor of keeping her out of the way while you guys are in here playing doctor? Oh no, not Kuwabara, not the one logical choice. NOOO, let's pick Yusuke, he looks like a sucker!"

Botan fought to stifle the chuckle threatening to escape her. Although they weren't arguing any longer, he was still a little miffed at her for not telling them the truth, and she really didn't want to be the target for his anger again.

"I assure you, if she had really found you a threat you wouldn't have escaped with just a few scratches. She's quite ferocious when she transforms, and highly protective of Sango and Shippou. Oh, yes. Perhaps I should make introductions. I am Miroku. This is Inuyasha," he began, pointing to each as he went. "Kagome, Sango, and I see you've already met Kirara."

"We've already had the pleasure, thanks," Yusuke remarked snidely. "So, who's Shippou?"

Miroku's eyes narrowed as his thoughts returned to the missing member of their group. "He was an orphan child traveling in our company. Is he not here?"

Botan, Kurama, and Yusuke all exchanged a quiet look. They hadn't said it, but they were all thinking it—the boy they were tailing, the one taken by the demon must have been their missing companion. It only made sense, why else would the cat have been traveling with him?

"There was a demon when we found you," Kurama began in his most soothing voice, "in the confusion he managed to get away—he took the child with him. I'm sorry."

Miroku's heart stopped in his chest and he choked on his own breath. "What kind of demon?" He already knew the answer, but somehow he just couldn't stop himself from asking and hoping he was wrong.

"We were hoping you could tell us," Yusuke stated. "I've never seen anything like it."

Miroku gave a defeated sigh and hung his head thoughtfully. He hadn't wanted to divulge anything of importance without speaking to the others, but it looked as if they may be out for quite awhile, and if Naraku had taken Shippou he wanted to clear the air as soon as possible. "Exactly how did you find us?"

* * *

Koenma stared in disbelief at the two demons in front of him. Were they serious? "Let me see if I have this straight. You," he pointed at Shippou, "are offering me a shard of the Shikon Jewel—" 

"As well as the one in his possession." Shippou interjected quickly.

"Right…in exchange for the life of this boy." He blinked. "Why, what makes you think I can't just have the shard taken from you and send you on your way?"

Shippou frowned. "Do I look stupid to you? This shard is bound to me, it can't be taken from me until I have released it."

Koenma glanced to Hiei, who was leaned up against the wall with one knee drawn up. Hiei nodded to confirm the kitsune's story, and Koenma gritted his teeth. His whole body was radiating doubt.

"I assure you I have no interest in finding the jewel, but I do have an obligation to uphold concerning this boy."

"I can't let you kill him."

"He's already dead."

Koenma sighed and covered his face with his hands, thoroughly dejected. "I know."

"If you know, then how do you justify letting this child wander like some kind of beast. It isn't right!" Shippou was getting frustrated with the child sovereign and his cool demeanor was beginning to falter. "He deserves peace, he deserves to be with his people! We owe him that!"

"I don't owe anyone anything!" Koenma was shouting now as well. "You can't honestly expect me to believe you actually have some sort of humanitarian interest in this child! Look, we'll put him to rest if needs be, but I'm not about to let you make that kind of decision for me."

"You have no idea what kind of interest I have in this boy!"

"Oh, please, enlighten me."

Shippou gave an exasperated snort. "Fine, if you must know—I was among the original group to recover the Shikon Jewel. But we weren't the only ones after the jewel. The last of the Taijiya line traveled in our company after one such demon who sought out the jewel destroyed her village. She was his sister. It was her life's mission to free him from the clutches of the demon who had slaughtered her kin. However, unfortunately, she and the others of my group gave their lives before her work was complete. I had thought he died along with them until recently. I feel it's my duty to put him to rest now, for her."

Koenma sat silently for a moment. "I see."

"No, you don't. You will never understand the power of that jewel, the utter destruction contained in its shell." His voice was calm now, barely above a whisper. "It can never be found—never. I'm offering this to you, the one opportunity to keep it from being fully reconstituted. Take it, please. Take it and let me fulfill my obligation."

"Very well. You may take the boy on one condition."

"I'm listening."

"We've had a slight complication concerning the jewel." Shippou's eyes narrowed in speculation, "I told you, I—" "You have no interest in the jewel, yes, yes I know. You may not have an interest but you do have experience in these matters. We could use your help."

"What do you mean?"

"We've already found the rest of the jewel. However…well, it's been broken again."

Shippou stood utterly speechless. Were the Gods conspiring against him? A million different thoughts and emotions attacked his senses simultaneously, and he felt his knees grow weak. "You can't be serious," he breathed. He was trapped. He couldn't allow the jewel to bring about the chaos it had so successfully imposed on the world in the feudal era. "I have no choice," he muttered.

"I know, and for what it's worth, I'm sorry." He genuinely was, too. He didn't like roping the kitsune into his problems like that, but he knew they were going to need all the help they could get. "Hiei, take Shippou with you. Yusuke and the others are at Genkai's shrine. You're to wait there with them until I come with more news. You might take the opportunity to prepare yourselves for the hunt. I have a feeling this is going to get ugly."

He sighed heavily as they left his office for Genkai's shrine. He decided to leave it up to Yusuke or Kurama to bring them up to speed on the unknown demon. He didn't have any more time to spare, as he was doing his best to compile information on their unexpected guests. He wasn't sure, but something told him they were going to need these people before all was said and done.

* * *

Yokoshima gazed thoughtfully at the image of his future partner displayed in the pool of light at his feet. Naraku was injured, far more than he would have liked. It was nothing he couldn't work around, though. He grimaced at the thought. Apparently he was going to have to work around a great deal more than he'd planned. He had not anticipated that damned detective and his brat pack to show up. Thanks to that meddlesome twerp he was going to have to revamp 500 years worth of scheming. 

Not that it really mattered to him. The whole thing may actually benefit him. Yes, a little shard hunt may be just the thing to persuade Naraku into joining forces. Sensui had already pledged his allegiance. The only thing missing now was Naraku.

He smirked and rubbed his hands together greedily. Finally, it was time. For 500 years he'd waited, keeping that exterminator brat under careful scrutiny, making sure he remained virtually unknown in Makai until he could determine the whereabouts of the priestess. Now, the board was set and the pieces were moving. It was just a matter of time before he would crush them all, and human and demon alike would bow before him. He could almost taste it—soon, very soon, the Reikai throne would be his.

He turned his head slightly to look over his shoulder. "Come, Kenshiki. It's time we paid Naraku a visit."

* * *

**A/N: Whew! That was a long one! Thanks for reading, I hope you all enjoyed it. Don't forget to review, I love hearing from you guys. Next chapter: The journey begins!**


	5. Chapter Five

**_A.N: Well, here it is, finally! I am so, so sorry for the wait on this chapter! It's just that things are coming just a little slower than I'd anticipated for this fic, so chapters may very well be delayed. But no worries! Nothing gripes me more than a work that never gets finished. It may take a while, but I promise I'll get there. Hopefully, the next chapter won't take 2 ½ months like this one did, but I don't want to make any promises on the next update. Just know that I'll get it out as soon as I possibly can!_**

**_With that said, I'd like to give special thanks Shabopo for being a kick-ass beta and helping me out when I really needed it. Thanks so much! I couldn't ask for better._**

**_Also, I'd like to thank Saiyanprincesscat, for taking the time to send me all kinds of useful information about Yu Yu Hakusho (as I said before, I'm not all that familiar with this anime) and for basically giving me the extra push I needed to get out of my rut, and get on with this fic. Thanks a bunch, girl—this chapter's for you!_**

**I do not own anything pertaining to Yu Yu Hakusho or Inuyasha. I do, however, own Yokoshima, Kenshiki, and whatever other nasty little minions (unrelated to the aforementioned shows) that happen to get thrown into the mix. **

_**Chapter Five**_

Naraku gave an exasperated snort as he dropped his hand from Kohaku's brow. The images were muddled and convoluted, but they were enough to confirm his suspicions. The miko had cast a spell, one that she apparently did not possess the strength to support. It was no easy task to draw the power out of the Shikon jewel, even in its broken state; the gem was treacherous and above all self-preserving. As its guardian she should have known it, and she should have realized the potential consequences of such an unbalanced energy exchange. One could not take away without first having something to give. It was simply the way of things. Her power hadn't been enough, and so it turned on her, taking all of theirs as well, life and spirit energy included—body and soul. It devoured wholly, without prejudice or mercy, anyone and anything within its immediate reach.

Except for one.

"Damn that foolish girl," he growled. She had been a thorn in his side from the minute he laid eyes on her. His victory had been imminent, but she had snatched it from him in a fit of desperation and brought him here, in a strange land and back to square one. He snarled; she would no doubt be the first to feel his wrath.

He supposed he should consider himself lucky, though. He wasn't sure how the odd miko had managed to escape the retribution of the jewel, but he was quite certain that if she hadn't he would still be trapped inside. Or dead. Worse still, he could have been alone in this place. He did, at least, still have Kohaku, and for that he was grateful. Once again he silently thanked the neko for interfering in his attempt to kill the child at their last encounter. The boy had proven quite useful in the last few days, leading him to a suitable place for his recovery and providing him with useful information from the images trapped in his mind. It would have been a waste to deprive himself of such a valuable resource.

He took a moment to regard the exterminator carefully. Though he was still very much a child, the scars and calluses and stone set to his features said otherwise. The years weighed heavily on him, and Naraku wondered just how long he'd been stuck inside the Shikon no Tama. Obviously long enough for him to be able to notice the subtle changes in his minion. He was different now, even emptier than ever before, and Naraku felt a sense of smug satisfaction and pride knowing that he'd been the cause of such utter despair.

It was intoxicating, really, to be the bane of someone's existence.

"I see you've received my gift." Naraku nearly jumped as the intruder's ominous voice permeated the shadows and ricocheted off the rocky cavern walls that housed him. He tensed, alarmed that he hadn't even noticed the presence of another. "I trust the boy has been of some use."

"Who are you?" Naraku asked cautiously and scanned the area in vain for his visitor. He didn't like being taken by surprise, especially when he was in no shape to defend himself; he found it increasingly difficult to keep his cool. "Show yourself, I have no time for games."

"Now, is that any way to greet your benefactor?"

"Benefactor?"

"In a manner of speaking. Surely you don't think you've been freed strictly by chance, do you?"

"Perhaps not," he began in a slow and deliberate tone. "Though I fail to see how I may thank you properly when we seem to be on terms such as these. Come, venture into the light so that I may know my savior." He had just enough strength for one good blast of miasma; if he could only see his opponent, he might stand a chance.

A slow chuckle, low and menacing filled the room as the figure breached the shadows and let the light sweep over his ghostly pale features. The youkai approached slowly with a preternatural grace evident in his step. He was strikingly handsome, tall and lean, yet muscular, with an almost luminescent glow to his ivory skin, and a river of long, pale, blue hair held back in a topknot. A prominent scar of faint blue lightning ran the entire length of his slender face, beginning above his left eyebrow and piercing through the center of his startling opalescent eye. His eyes—a frightening and unnatural combination of pearl and sky—fixed the injured hanyou in an intimidating stare as he spoke admonishingly. "Don't be a fool, Naraku." He smirked. "You and I both know you don't have the energy to hold me off, and that miasma of yours will have no effect on me."

Naraku clenched his teeth and set the intruder in a heated crimson glare. The demon wasn't lying, and Naraku suspected that it wouldn't have mattered if he were injured or not. The power of his white hot aura alone served as a silent testimony to his skill, and Naraku knew then, beyond any doubt, that he was no match for this youkai. "Come to kill me, have you?"

The youkai waved his remark off carelessly in response. "Do you really think I'd trouble myself with setting you free just to kill you at the first given opportunity?"

"True enough," he grumbled, though still not entirely convinced. "Who are you? What is it you want from me?"

"I come seeking an alliance of sorts. You see, you possess certain skills that are quite uncommon in youkai these days, skills that would prove quite useful in my endeavors. Likewise, I'm willing to help you in your own. I've done a great deal of study on you, my friend, enough to know an allegiance would benefit us both."

"If you know me so well, then you should know I don't take on partners."

He chuckled. "Perhaps not, but I also know you aren't so foolish as to pass an opportunity that serves your purposes. Especially when it involves the Shikon no Tama."

Naraku raised a suspicious eyebrow and eyed the demon warily. He'd never seen a youkai like this one. Unlike those of his own time, he was neither beast nor element. It set his teeth on edge, not knowing what his opponent was capable of. It didn't help matters that he was really in no position to negotiate much. He didn't trust the foreign menace, not in the slightest. Yet, despite his mistrust, he had to confess a bit of curiosity. Whatever the demon had up his sleeve, he'd certainly put in a great deal of effort to bring Naraku in on it. And if it meant getting his hands on the Shikon Jewel, he could certainly bide his time as an ally, at least until he put the gem back together again. "Go on."

The demon flashed a fanged grin. "I thought you'd see things my way. However, now is not the time. I fear you've been followed. It would be wise to return to Makai for the time being, until you've regained your strength."

"Followed? Makai?" Naraku was thoroughly confused now.

"Yes, it seems even the living world is not without its spies. My assistant is outside disposing of the current intrusion, however it is only a matter of time before the Reikai finds you here. Come, it will be easier to conceal you in the Demon World."

"Just who are you?" Naraku said, not bothering to hide the suspicion in his voice.

"My name is Yokoshima, and we have much to discuss."

* * *

Miroku sat on the rough stone floor of their makeshift hospital room, back against the wall, feet drawn in, as the muffled sounds of a heated argument infiltrated the room from outside its protective walls. No doubt Yusuke and Inuyasha were getting further acquainted. He sighed heavily. The two had been at odds from the minute Inuyasha had revived, and Miroku was once again grateful that Kagome had awoken first. She was always best at keeping Inuyasha, well…manageable.

This was thankfully a trait that hadn't changed about his friend, maybe the only thing that hadn't changed. She was different somehow, not entirely, but different nonetheless. She was quieter, slightly older than he'd remembered, perhaps a little less naïve than before. One might have passed it off as maturity. She was, in fact, two years older in this life cycle than she had been when he'd met her in the previous.

Miroku didn't buy it for a second.

Something else, something distant and lonely lingered in her eyes that Miroku could only speculate about. Whatever the cause of her detachment, he suspected it involved more than the trauma of having her soul restored. He'd never say it out loud, and it troubled him to admit it, even to himself, but the chill about her unnerved him. It reminded him entirely too much of another lonely priestess they'd known.

He wondered if Inuyasha had realized as much.

Kikyou. Even after 500 years she lingered about them. Still, in a way, he should be thanking her. It hadn't taken long for he and Kurama to theorize why Kagome had been spared, what had kept her physical form anchored to the living realm when the incomplete Shikon jewel had ensnared the rest of them. If not for the fact that Kikyou had been reanimated using a tiny fraction of Kagome's soul, then Kagome would have been essentially complete and as such susceptible to the same fate as they. How ironic, he thought, that Kikyou, whose sole objective was to see Inuyasha in Hell, had inadvertently been the one to keep him from descending into it.

A heavy thud echoed throughout the hall that shook him from his thoughts, and Miroku winced sympathetically. _Well, at least some things never change. _

"That's got to be the third time in the last half-hour," Kurama began, slightly amused. He paused as a roar of laughter reached his ears and the angry voices began again. "Perhaps we should get one of those rosaries for Yusuke as well."

"Perhaps," Miroku chuckled. His amusement bled back over to apprehension as Kurama knelt beside Sango and prepared to reapply yet another set of bandages. "How is she?" The concern was evident in his voice. He knew quite well she and Inuyasha had taken the brunt of Naraku's assault, and though both Yukina and Kurama had assured him she wouldn't die, he couldn't help but feel anxious.

Kurama offered a reassuring smile, though he was beginning to get a little concerned as well. It had been nearly a full day since the others had woken, and the demon slayer had yet to stir in the slightest. "I'm sure she's fine. Her body just needs rest."

Miroku nodded and tried unsuccessfully to appear relaxed. Though he wanted more than anything for Sango to wake up and say something, he felt nothing but cold dread settle in the pit of his stomach for the moment she did. He would have to tell her the truth then, and it was something Miroku wasn't at all looking forward to. He didn't want to be the one to tell her about Kohaku.

It was decidedly worse than the anxiety he'd felt when he believed that Naraku had taken Shippou. True, he'd been horrified for what the little kit would surely endure at the malicious claws of their enemy, but the feeling was short lived. It hadn't taken long for Kagome to wake and shed some light on the situation. It seemed Shippou hadn't shared in their misfortune, and though Kagome either could not or would not elaborate much, he'd been relieved. He rather thought it for the best; at least Shippou had had the possibility of a peaceful existence without them, without the threat of Naraku and the jewel looming over him. Miroku hoped this had been the case, but found his optimism provided little consolation.

It would give none to Sango.

The sound of a scuffle breached the silence and Kurama groaned. "Not again." He sighed, "Perhaps it would be best if you intervened. I'm sure your miko friend could use some assistance."

Miroku stood and nodded. His eyes drifted regretfully to Sango. "You'll call me if she wakes?"

"Of course," Kurama replied and watched Miroku head into battle before turning back to his ministrations. He might have gone himself if he hadn't thought the monk would be more effective. Somehow, he didn't think the presence of another demon would do much to ease the nerves of the mistrustful hanyou.

Kurama shook his head, lost in his thoughts as he unwound the gauze and began redressing the slayer's wounds. With the exception of Hiei, he didn't think he'd ever come across a more distrustful creature in all his life. From the minute he'd regained consciousness, Inuyasha had questioned their every move, desperately searching for some ulterior motive on their part. The hanyou was suspicious almost to the point of paranoia, and though Kurama couldn't help but be slightly irritated, he honestly couldn't blame him, either. It wasn't easy to take a complete stranger's word as indisputable truth—even if they had healed you. After all, being ripped away from time and space, only to be thrust back into it 500 years later with a vicious demon (who happens to be hell bent on your destruction) on the loose, didn't really seem like ideal circumstances in which to breed trust.

Then, of course, there was also the matter of the newly broken Shikon no Tama. Kurama still couldn't believe it. He'd often heard the stories about it; it was, after all, nearly an icon among thieves. Yet in all his 300 years he had never imagined it to be real, that the legend could indeed come to life. And now it had, only to be scattered like ash on the wind in a hasty moment of fear and bad temper. The hanyou had _definitely_ not been pleased.

Kirara shifted slightly from her position at the foot of Sango's bed and drew his attention. He smiled affectionately at the seemingly harmless kitten. It had been eons since he'd seen a nekomata, and Kurama couldn't help but wonder on the nature of her relationship with the exterminator. Most neko had a tendency to shy away from other species, to find one so fiercely attached to a human was rare indeed. Even as her other companions had regained consciousness and moved on, she had remained a diligent sentinel at her mistress' side, refusing to budge from that one spot.

Either this youkai was very unusual, or this was no ordinary human girl. Kurama thought it likely to be a little of both.

Then again, none of their unusual guests could really be classified as ordinary. They'd seen their share of battles; that much was clear. He cast a sideways glance to the slayer, examining the various wounds on her body—some old, some new, and silently, he wished he could do more. Kurama ran a curious finger across a particularly long scar on Sango's abdomen. If their scars hadn't been an indication of past adversity, their weaponry most certainly had.

And what a colorful array it was. The slayer had been packing enough blades and poison bombs to supply a whole town, and the hanyou's own sword, while considerably worn, had nonetheless been threatening. He sighed as he turned toward his supplies, his thoughts on the hanyou making him suddenly very glad they'd had the foresight to disarm their guests before treating them.

Or so he thought.

Suddenly, Kirara mewled his only warning. Kurama froze as the familiar cool of steel pressed firmly up against his throat from behind. "If you move, I _will_ kill you," she said. Her voice was steady as stone, and Kurama cursed himself for not realizing she was awake sooner. Had he been paying attention at all, such would not have been the case. As it was, he hadn't been, and even though he was certain he could overpower her at any given time, he acquiesced, recognizing her need to gain control of what was surely a frightening situation for the girl. "Where am I, demon?"

"Impressive. You must be very good at your trade to have taken me by surprise," Kurama replied calmly, clearly not intimidated in the slightest.

"That's not what I asked you," she began as she applied just enough pressure to draw a thin line of blood from below his left ear. "Is it?"

"No. However, I don't believe I am the one to answer your questions," Kurama replied, still in a casual tone. "Your friends are here. I can take you to them, if you like."

Sango's eyes narrowed as she considered his offer. Could he be telling the truth? She wasn't sure if her friends were even alive at this point, much less here with her. He hadn't _seemed_ to be a danger to her, but what else was she supposed to think? It wasn't exactly a happy set of circumstances—waking up in a strange place, in nothing but her breast bindings and what looked like a pair of Kagome's pajama pants, in the company of an unfamiliar demon who was way too close for comfort. Besides, it wouldn't be the first time Sango had been subjected to demon trickery.

Still, she didn't really have many other options. She had no idea where she was, let alone the location of her clothes and weaponry. "How do I know you're telling the truth, demon?"

"You don't," Kurama answered. "Though if I'd wanted to hurt you, I could have done so by now."

"Maybe," Sango began, still not completely convinced. A soft purr suddenly caught her attention and Sango chanced a glance to her side. "K-Kirara?" She inquired hopefully. The kitten mewled excitedly and jumped onto the slayer's shoulder, wrapping herself affectionately around Sango's neck.

"She's hardly left your side," Kurama said, hoping the firecat would provide enough consolation for the exterminator to quell her panic and release him from his rather uncomfortable position at the end of her blade.

Although she did feel slightly relieved, Sango couldn't afford to take any chances. Carefully, she eased her feet onto the floor, never removing her knife from Kurama's neck. With her free hand she grabbed a fistful of long red hair and tugged. "On your feet," she demanded as she stood. "I want you to take me to them."

* * *

Inuyasha crossed his arms in a huff and leaned against the wall, grumbling heatedly as the cocky spirit detective smirked triumphantly from his place on the other side of the room. Man what he wouldn't give to wipe that stupid expression right off Yusuke's face. Inuyasha flexed his claws unconsciously, just waiting for the spirit detective to run his mouth.

"Don't you even think about it, Inuyasha," Kagome said warningly as she stepped in front of the irritable hanyou. "Or so help me God, I'll say it!"

"What!" he snapped. "I didn't do nothin' wrong and you know it, Kagome!"

"Don't start in on me now, Inuyasha!" Kagome gave an exasperated snort and crossed her arms. "You could at least attempt to be civil."

"Me…ME! Damn it, I'm not the bad guy here, ya know!"

"And neither are they," Miroku said, clearly radiating frustration as he regarded the temperamental hanyou. Both he and Kagome had taken up residence directly in front of Inuyasha, just as Botan had with Yusuke, all of them hoping to, at the very least, stall any further assaults.

They were the only ones who cared to try at this point. Both Yukina and Kuwabara were carefully avoiding the potential path of destruction after failing miserably to occupy Yusuke's attention—Kuwabara had the bruises to prove it. Now they sat by passively, waiting for the battle of egos to end. Genkai hadn't even bothered to interfere, knowing Yusuke would only push that much harder if she did. Although, to be brutally honest, she was, in actuality, hoping to see them fight. She knew that Yusuke probably wouldn't lose, but that didn't mean he wouldn't get that rather large chip knocked off his shoulder. It would certainly do him a world of good. So, she too took up space in the audience, fervently hoping that, if nothing else, one dimwit might knock the other cold and give an old woman some peace and quiet.

"You don't know that, Miroku!" Inuyasha exclaimed heatedly, not bothering to keep his voice down. "Don't you all get it? You people can be so stupid sometimes! Who's to say they aren't working for Naraku? How do we know this isn't some big illusion just to trap us, trick us into giving away something about the jewel?"

"Honestly, Inuyasha," Kagome began wearily and brought a hand up to pinch the bridge of her nose. She could feel the beginnings of a massive headache coming on, and it went by the name of Inuyasha. "We've been through this before. If they were working for Naraku, if they wanted to hurt us, then why bother to heal us?"

Inuyasha was beyond frustrated now. Why did they always have to gang up on him like that! Gods, why couldn't he just make them understand how much danger they could be in? They were outnumbered, and truthfully he was in no shape to protect them right now. He understood the circumstances, well…mostly, and he knew that Kagome and Miroku were probably right. It would, after all, take a serious amount of magic to pull off an illusion as extensive as this would have to be, more magic than any of them had ever seen most likely. But damn it, they were just so trusting. _Too_ trusting in Inuyasha's opinion. It could get them hurt, and although he would rather die than admit it, Inuyasha didn't think he could live with himself if he let that happen.

Inuyasha sighed audibly, a sign that he was close to giving in. "Are you forgetting that dumbass broke the jewel," he began much more quietly. "_Again_," he added quickly for emphasis.

"Believe it or not, Inuyasha," Miroku chimed in, "he probably did us a favor. From what Kagome has told us, the jewel was very nearly complete. And we all know what would have happened had Naraku gotten his hands on it. If nothing else, Yusuke bought us some time."

The hanyou grumbled, but his irritable muttering lacked the malicious undertone it possessed only moments before. Damn that monk, always making sense of things! "Feh. Whatever. I can make nice until Sango wakes up, if that's what you want Kagome, but as soon as she's on her feet we're outta here. You got that!" He pointed his finger into her chest with his last words, effectively making his point.

She might have responded with a sharp-tongued retort or even a 'sit' had she been given the chance. He knew full well that they weren't going to be able to leave as soon as Sango woke up, and he knew why. However, anything she might have said died in her throat when Yukina surprised them all with a frantic plea.

"Please, don't hurt him!"

The room froze as everyone looked up to see Kurama standing in the doorway, hunched over backward, with a knife to his throat, and a very edgy demon slayer poised behind him.

For a moment no one spoke out of sheer shock. It was the first time Yusuke had ever seen someone get the jump on Kurama, and he nearly rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't seeing things. Inuyasha, on the other hand, smiled openly—glad to see that at least one of his friends still had some sense.

"Sango," Kagome ventured to speak, hoping to calm her friend. Mahogany eyes darted toward them and Kagome could see the relief flash in them. However, she was reluctant to just let go of her leverage. Despite her gut feeling that these were in fact her friends, she was also very aware that many demons were capable of shape-shifting and mind games. It was a lesson Naraku had taught her well.

"Sango…please," Kagome began again, bringing her hand up quickly to cut off the retort Inuyasha was sure to give. "They're friends."

She looked as if she might have listened to Kagome in that brief moment, but Yusuke broke the uncomfortable silence that followed and, startled, Sango only tightened her grip.

"Damn it, Botan!" He shouted. "I thought you said you took their weapons!"

Botan cringed. "Well _excuse_ me, but I thought that I had!"

"Her bindings," Miroku muttered, mostly to himself.

"Pardon?" Botan asked, a little confused as to whom he was talking to.

"Her breast bindings," he replied a little louder. "Forgive me, I should have thought to mention it sooner. She keeps a small blade hidden in her breast bindings."

Sango flushed angrily. In that moment, Kurama was completely forgotten as she dropped her arms, clenched her fists at her sides, and leveled the monk with her most vicious glare. "And just how would you know that, houshi-sama!"

Miroku grinned sheepishly and brought a hand to rest on the back of his head, knowing that it would indeed be quite some time before he'd be able to get away with peeping at the hot springs again. He cowered at the onslaught that was to come from the indignant exterminator but was surprised when a swift and steady hand smacked him across the back of the head before Sango even had a chance to reach him. "YOU PERVERT!" Botan shrieked as she pummeled him. "Is there nothing sacred to you!"

"Why, Lady Botan you wound me," he said, feigning hurt as he dramatically brought his delinquent hand to rest on his chest. "I can assure you, Lady Sango's breasts are, indeed, very sacred to me."

Botan didn't get the chance to reprimand the monk before Sango sent him sprawling with a rather nasty left hook. "Pig of a monk!" She snapped.

Miroku did his best to ignore Kuwabara and Yusuke's snickering while he willed away the gray spots in his vision. Gingerly, he sat up from his place on the floor and cast Sango an apologetic expression. He hadn't really wanted to embarrass her, and he was definitely worse for the wear, but he was successful just the same. _Mission accomplished, situation diffused_.

Whatever doubts Sango may have had about her friends crumbled under the weight of his gaze. No demon trick could ever replicate the intensity of his eyes or the color of his character, and she suddenly felt guilty for decking him so hard. "Get up," she said as she reached out a hand to help him stand. "You know, you really should know better by now."

He smiled warmly, a mischievous gleam in his cerulean eyes. "What can I say, I'm a glutton for punishment."

"I—oomph," Sango started, only to have the breath squeezed out of her when Kagome trapped her in a fierce hug. "Oh Sango," she cried and pulled back to look at the slayer. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, really. What's going on here? What happened with Naraku?"

Kagome stiffened, and Sango realized just how quiet the room had suddenly gotten. Her heart dropped like a ball of lead into her stomach, and she turned to look at Inuyasha, and then Miroku, both of whom were pointedly avoiding her gaze.

Kagome fought the lump that had formed in her throat and looked the exterminator square in the eye. "Maybe you should sit down."

* * *

"Do you think we can trust them?" Sango asked quietly as she stared out into the distance from her place at the top of the temple stairs.

Kagome blinked and set the exterminator in an incredulous stare. That wasn't exactly the reaction she'd been expecting from the slayer. It had taken awhile, but after a few more awkward moments in which Kuwabara not-so-subtly pointed out Sango's lack of clothing, followed by Botan's speedy effort to rectify the situation (much to Miroku's dismay), their hosts had graciously afforded them a little privacy to inform Sango of their rather grievous plight.

And now, after a lengthy and daunting explanation which Kagome and Miroku had done their best to put delicately and an extremely long moment of silence, _this _was her initial response? "Huh?" Kagome questioned, more than a little confused at Sango's apparent lack of interest in her brother's involvement.

Sango sighed heavily but did not turn to face them. At the moment, she simply couldn't--not if she wanted to keep her composure in tact. Sango didn't want to meet the look that she inevitably would when she caught their gaze. It was a look she had, unfortunately, grown accustomed to since the destruction of her village.

Pity.

She hated the look almost as much as she hated the reason it was there. She could feel it on them now, even as they tried to hide it, and she deliberately avoided seeing it. She could feel it in tangible waves of flame, burning through her back and into her veins, washing her in the shame of it. The expression served as just another painful reminder of the truth of the matter: If she had been strong enough, there would be no cause for pity. But she wasn't, and now...

Sango nearly choked on her own breath as she followed the thought to its conclusion_. She had failed him_. _Again_.

"Sango?" Sango fought the urge to jump at the sound of Kagome's concerned voice. She'd nearly forgotten they were there. Sango shook her head, pushing back the guilt that threatened to spill from her eyes and mouth, though she still didn't turn around. Thankfully there were other things to focus on.

"Do you think we can trust them?" She repeated, a little more loudly.

"Well, I'm not sure we have a choice right now," Kagome said, ignoring the derisive snort from Inuyasha. She was still a little unsure of her friend, but Sango obviously didn't want to discuss her brother, and Kagome wasn't going to push her. "Besides, they haven't done anything wrong."

"Yeah, well, it's not like we need these guys," Inuyasha chimed in. He'd held his tongue just as long as he could stand it. Sango was up and moving now, and he didn't see any reason why they couldn't just be on their way. "We've gotten along just fine without them so far. I say we get the hell outta here. Naraku's hurt. This may be our best chance to destroy him, and I don't wanna blow it 'cause we're stuck here waitin' around on those jerks!"

"Inuyasha you idiot!" Kagome snapped, finally reaching her wits' end with the hanyou. "Just where is it you think we're going to go? Huh? This isn't Feudal Japan anymore! We can't just go traipsing around the city asking about jewel shards and demons! It doesn't work that way anymore." Kagome sighed heavily and brought her hands up to rub her temples. "And home certainly isn't an option," she added much more quietly.

Not that Kagome didn't want to go home—in fact she wanted nothing more. But, if Naraku discovered her family, he'd no doubt use them to get to her, and Kagome wasn't about to compromise their safety. No, going home was simply out of the question.

"Look," Miroku stepped in to ease the rising confrontation. "We're all a little on edge here, but sniping at each other isn't going to solve anything. Let's just calm down and wait to see what this Koenma person has to say before we make any decisions. If we don't like what we hear, we can go from there. All right?"

Inuyasha gave a curt 'feh' but made no protest, and Kagome merely nodded quietly, while Sango only continued to look away--seemingly captivated by the impending dusk. Miroku strode up next to her and quirked an eyebrow. "And what do you think, Sango?" He asked softly, genuinely wanting her opinion on the matter.

She was silent for a time, and Miroku was beginning to wonder if she'd even heard him, when she finally turned pensive eyes toward the ground and spoke. "Do you think they'll return my weapons?" He smiled slightly as he lifted his reprobate hand to scratch affectionately behind the ears of the firecat in residence on her shoulder, amused with Sango's response even if he wasn't sure he should be. "Only if you promise not to take any hostages."

"Agreed."

* * *

Shippou stalked through the thick foliage of the forest surrounding Genkai's shrine, quietly contemplating the strange turn of events that brought him to travel with his relatively silent demon acquaintance. Neither had spoken since the meeting with Koenma; not that Shippou minded. In fact, he rather enjoyed the tranquility and didn't object to the length of the trip to the human world as he might have otherwise. He was perfectly aware that Spirit World had much faster means of travel, and Shippou hadn't missed the fact that Hiei had deliberately avoided such means. Either he was testing Shippou's endurance, or he was dreading what would inevitably come at the end of their trek as much as Shippou was.

Shippou groaned inwardly as his thoughts again turned to the upcoming task. How? _How_ had he managed to let himself get dragged into this mess? Why was it that the better part of his life revolved solely around so small a thing as the Shikon jewel? Was it too much to ask for a peaceful existence? Hadn't he lost enough? He clenched the bottle around his neck tightly, as though holding it would provide the answers he sought.

He had to admit being a bit surprised that Koenma would allow him to leave with the shard. However, it was but a silent understanding between them; a sort of payment for services rendered. When he found Kohaku, Koenma got the shard--it was that simple. Perhaps it was a little callous of him to treat the situation so casually, as though he hadn't just traded a human life like it were of little more importance than a sleazy business deal. But Shippou held no illusions about what he was. He was a youkai, and therefore as inherently ruthless as any other youkai; and any feelings of loyalty and honor his actions might elicit were beside the point. He did what he must to fulfill his obligations, and his personal motivations were inconsequential. The outcome would remain the same, regardless of his emotional investment.

Or at least that's what he liked to tell himself.

Just then, something strangely familiar invaded his senses, breaking Shippou away from his train of thought. He stopped abruptly and sniffed, not entirely certain his nose wasn't deceiving him. That smell, he _knew_ that smell. It was like earth and rain, tempered steel and spice, leather and the subtle sweetness that only females seemed to possess--but more importantly, it was like coming home. In his entire life, only four women had ever inspired such a feeling in him, and to his knowledge all four were dead. _It couldn't be...could it?_

Shippou felt the blood turn to ice water in his veins and the breath turn to ash in his mouth. For a moment he couldn't move, couldn't tear his eyes away from the direction of the presence he felt just a short distance away. He had to know. He _needed_ to know.

Without a word, Shippou changed course, letting his feet carry him to where they instinctively wanted to go.

Hiei had long since vanished.

* * *

At first, it was only to satisfy a passing curiosity, though typically he had no interest in the affairs of humans and could have cared less. However, in spite of himself, when Hiei had sensed her energy just a slight distance from the shrine, he just couldn't help but wonder what she could possibly be doing way out here. After all, with the exception of Genkai, human females didn't exactly frequent the area--these woods were hardly the ideal location for a Sunday afternoon picnic. So, without so much as a word to the fox, he'd taken a quick detour. Why not? If he knew that fool Koenma, it could very well be a week before he showed up with the information they needed, and he was in absolutely no rush to keep company with Kuwabara.

However, what had begun as mild curiosity bled over into outright intrigue when he found the girl in question. Much to his surprise, she appeared to be working some sword forms, though it was a style he'd never seen. He observed her intently and had to admit, not only was he shocked to find her there, but she also appeared to possess some skill. Her motions were fluid and well practiced—a dance of finesse and precision, and it occurred to him, then, that even though she lacked his level of talent, she had the potential to be just as lethal.

He'd been watching for some time when he realized that she was aware of his presence. He should have noticed it sooner--the minute tension in her stance, the way she managed to manipulate the direction of her forms to gradually put the distance between them. And all the while the dance never faltered; she moved with a grace and ease nearly as deadly as his own, revealing the telltale signs of one accustomed to filling the role of both predator and prey. _Clever, that one--for a human_.

As it was pointless to continue his ruse, Hiei decided to have a bit of fun with the situation. Swiftly, he dropped from his position in the treetops and landed gracefully behind her. Sango spun, bringing her katana down in a wide arc and locking steel with steel. Wide, chocolate eyes clashed with crimson spheres glinted in hard challenge as the two faced off, neither willing to break the connection they held. Finally, when the pressure became too great, Sango's arms buckled and she stumbled backward. He lunged then, but she managed to roll away and gather her footing once more, taking a defensive crouch and panting heavily as she brought her katana up in anticipation of the next attack.

The sound of metal clashing filled the twilight air as the duel intensified. Hiei continued his assault, raining blow after deadly blow down on the slayer, which she blocked to the best of her ability. He struck, she parried. He lunged, she dodged. But always, Sango was on the defensive. It was a battle for dominance, she realized, and she was losing. It was clear that his skill with a blade was far greater than hers.

Swords locked again, and again Sango was driven back. However, Hiei didn't pursue immediately this time. Instead, he withdrew slightly, regarding her intently, and burning her through with fierce intimidation of his scrutiny. She nearly shuddered; the power of his stare had her summoning every ounce of her will to keep from looking away. Finally, her patience had grown thin. Abandoning her stance, she stood upright, and the two began to circle each other predatorily.

"Don't toy with me, demon," she said with as much ferocity as she could muster. "I know you're capable of more."

Hiei smirked. It was true, he hadn't used the extent of his strength or speed against her, but truthfully, he was enjoying their game. To a youkai, few things were as pleasurable as the thrill of the hunt, the scent of panic—he savored such things, fed on them as the beast within him demanded. And although he could not kill her, he could most certainly make her feel that dread, because right now, this was his game. He was the hunter, and she was the hunted. He couldn't wait to smell her fear when she realized it.

"Those are foolish words for someone in your position," he said with some amusement. "Are you so eager to die, human?"

She regarded him coolly, annoyed with his condescension. "I'm not afraid of you," Sango stated defiantly.

Hiei growled in annoyance. "Then you're a fool," he retorted as he shot forward, taking the offensive once again.

Sango was running out of options; it was almost completely dark now, making it difficult for her to see, and the day's events were beginning to weigh her down. She continued to block as she scanned her surroundings for any possible means of escape. Finally, in a last ditch effort she changed the angle of her blade and thrust the greater weight of it upward as he swung down, catching him slightly off guard and giving her the moment needed to put space between them. She flipped backwards then, coming to a halt at the edge of a winding stream that separated the clearing from the forest.

Hiei, however, was undeterred. He advanced on her mercilessly and in one swift motion removed Sango of her weapon.

Sango went rigid as the tip of his blade stopped short of her throat and hovered there, menacingly. Once again, their eyes locked, and Sango suppressed a shiver at the intensity of his stare. "You lose," he stated matter-of-factly.

Her breath came in ragged pants, and a bead of sweat trickled from her forehead to the ground. For a time, neither moved, and the silence stretched between them. Finally, she sighed and lifted her chin slightly to further expose her neck, though she never took her eyes away from his. "Well, get on with it," she said with a certain grim finality evident in her voice.

Hiei stepped back, then, more than a little surprised at her actions. Where was her fear? Where was the begging he had been sure he'd hear? He scowled. "Hn. Don't presume to order me, girl," he snapped.

His irritation did not faze her, though, and despite the foolishness of such a decision, she continued to goad him. "What's wrong, demon? Lost your nerve?"

That did it. He rushed her, intent on knocking her cold right where she stood. It was a poor substitute for his preferred method of dealing with those who dared to question his mettle, but one that would effectively keep him from spending time in Reikai prison.

However, just as he was about to bring the hilt of his sword down upon her head, she neatly sidestepped and sent a painful blow into the center of his back with her elbow, using the momentum of his attack to send him tumbling head first into the stream below.

Hiei came up sputtering and furious beyond all rational thought. He was thoroughly soaked; his normally spiky black hair was saturated, flattened to his head, and sticking to his face. She doused him—the bitch had actually doused him!

He stood and rounded on her, scarlet eyes blazing and malice oozing from him in palpable waves. Sango scrambled for her blade, but he was on her before she could blink. She stiffened as she felt the heat of his unnaturally warm hand enclose around her neck and hoist her up from the ground. She kicked and squirmed in a futile attempt to dislodge him, but his fury had completely overshadowed his judgment. No, there was no turning back for either of them, now.

Desperation crept in as the air turned stale in her lungs. _Not like this_, she thought. _Please, Kami. Not like this_. But between her distress and his rage, neither noticed the frenzied cry echo around them until the attack was already launched.

"SHOCKWAVE," was the only thing heard before a blinding light engulfed them both.

* * *

**Thank you so much to everyone who took the time to read and review!**

_**GreatestAnimeFreak, Coke-48-Kenshin, Cookiiex, youkosangohiei, BlackSpell, mina, Kagome-reincarnation, blackrose113, MirokuLuvr, Smile7499, lost-forgotten-alone, Ryukotsusei, and sweet-thing88**…Thanks so much for reviewing! It means so much to me. I hope you all enjoyed it!_

Please review so I know how I'm doing! I'm new to this, and I'd like to know what you guys think. Besides, I love hearing from you guys! Next Chapter: The journey really does begin this time—promise!


	6. Chapter Six

_A/N: Yes, that's right, folks, this isn't a figment of your imagination, and as far as I know the apocalypse isn't on the way. This is a real live, honest to goodness update from yours truly. I'm so sorry for the wait! Hope you all enjoy!_

_I'd like to offer special thanks to Gan Xingba, who was gracious enough to give a helping hand when I was stumped. Thanks man, you're the best! Also, thanks to Shabopo—you're awesome!_

Disclaimer: Do I honestly need to say this?

**_Chapter Six_**

Kagome clenched her eyes tightly and tried to ignore the nausea that crept up on her as her surroundings sped by in a furious, jittery blur. She'd almost forgotten what it was like to ride on Inuyasha's back when he was in a real hurry, and he was most definitely in a hurry.

"Which way, Kagome?" He asked, though it was more of a demand.

Kagome pried her eyes open to see Yusuke hot on their trail, Kuwabara in tow, asking the orange-haired boy the same question. "That way," they said at the same time, each pointing left, in the direction of the disturbance. Oddly enough, Kuwabara had been the first to sense it, but the words hadn't even escaped his lips when Kagome alerted Inuyasha and they were out the door, the others stumbling out after them.

"Back off, punk!" Inuyasha ground out when he realized Yusuke had caught up with him. "That shard is mine!"

"Dream on, Lassie!" Yusuke exclaimed with a grin. He pushed forward then, zipping past Inuyasha with an inhuman speed that sent dust and leaves flying up in its wake.

"Damn it!" Inuyasha cried as he pushed himself to the limit. No way was he going to let that arrogant little shit get a hold of his jewel shard! "How far, Kagome?"

"Not far—maybe a hundred yards," she replied. It was a good thing, too. If he didn't stop soon Kagome was sure she was going to be sick.

"Wait up, Urameshi," Kuwabara cried, though he really didn't know why he bothered as neither Yusuke nor Inuyasha paid him any attention. "There's something else out there!"

Kagome's brow knitted with worry as she took a moment to process Kuwabara's warning. She wasn't concerned for herself as long as Inuyasha was with her, and she had a sneaking suspicion that Yusuke could handle himself, but that didn't stop the sinking feeling she got in the pit of her stomach when she considered Sango.

The exterminator had managed to duck out almost as soon as the introductions were complete, using the excuse that without hiraikotsu to rely on, she needed the work with her katana. Kagome knew better, but if her friend wanted the time alone, she wasn't about to deprive her of it. It was a good cover, Kagome thought; even Kirara wouldn't disturb Sango when she was training.

Kagome shook her head to rid the thoughts. What was she worried about? Sango could take care of herself, better than most, really. She was just being silly.

No sooner had the thought crossed her mind did she have to rethink it entirely. Inuyasha came to an abrupt halt at Yusuke's desperate cry, and Kagome barely had time to register the seriousness of the situation unfolding before them until it was too late to stop it. In the clearing ahead of them, Sango was dangling helplessly at the mercy of a rather furious looking demon. However, the immediate danger wasn't the apparition squeezing the life out of the exterminator, but rather the one poised just a short distance away, hurdling a menacing orb of blue flame at the otherwise preoccupied pair.

Kagome faintly heard the demon call out his attack before Inuyasha flung her in the dirt and covered her body with his own. Kagome screwed her eyes shut as a tremendous force shook through her bones and a brilliant light erupted all around them like a tiny supernova.

An eerie stillness settled over them like a burial shroud, and Kagome chanced a quick glance up through the curtain of silver hair that clouded her vision. From the corner of her eye she noticed Yusuke picking himself up off the ground and swearing colorfully as Genkai, Kurama, Kuwabara, Miroku, and Kirara all spilled into the clearing.

Inuyasha jumped up then, bringing a slightly flustered Kagome with him. Kagome felt the heat rush to her cheeks as his hands lingered at her sides to steady her, and feeling uneasy, she squirmed away from him. Inuyasha quirked an eyebrow but remained quiet as she quickly brushed the moment aside and scanned the area, hoping to catch any indication of life beyond the cloud of dust and dark that still lingered in the air. "Oh God, what happened?" She breathed out as she realized that neither her friend nor the demon in her company were anywhere to be seen.

However, any reply Inuyasha might have made was abruptly cut off as Yusuke caught sight of the offending apparition through the settling earth. "You son of a bitch!" He shouted. He shot forward then, intent on making the demon very sorry for his transgressions.

Shippou tensed as he felt the spirit detective close in on him. He spun but had no time to summon a defense before the angry youth gripped him by the throat and pinned him to the nearest tree.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't blast you full of holes," he growled out dangerously.

Shippou hung limply in Yusuke's grasp, too stunned to say anything in his own defense. Had he but just a moment to clear his mind he might have explained the situation, though to be honest he really wasn't sure of it himself. Only after he'd let loose the attack did he take the time to consider who he'd actually unleashed it on. Shippou's mouth hung on the ghosts of words as he fought to piece together a suitable explanation for both himself and the spirit detective.

Thankfully, Genkai saved him the trouble. "Put him down, dimwit," she spoke as she placed a comforting hand on Yusuke's free arm.

"Are you getting senile, grandma? He just incinerated Hiei _and_ Demon Slayer Barbie!"

"That attack was harmless, idiot," she replied coolly. "This was an illusion—all light and no real destructive power. If you'd have taken three seconds to remove your head from your ass you might have noticed it. My guess is that they're stunned, perhaps even a little weak, but not dead." She smirked slyly then. "Your quick tempered friend should be grateful, I suspect this demon just spared him a one way trip to Reikai prison."

The furious tension that had settled about them dissipated as everyone, except Kurama, let out a collective sigh of relief. Yusuke immediately loosened his grip, and Shippou sank to his hands and knees—head hung and coughing as he struggled to gain even breaths. Yusuke crouched down in front of the kitsune and regarded him expectantly. "That true?" He questioned softly.

Kagome saw the demon nod, though he made no move to leave his position. Suddenly, she remembered what exactly had brought them there to begin with. "Inuyasha," she whispered urgently, "he has the jewel shard."

Inuyasha, however, was unusually quiet. Rather than push his way toward the demon and demand he turn over the shard, as he normally would have, Inuyasha stayed back and ignored both Kagome and the quiet interrogation between Yusuke and the apparition in question. The hanyou furrowed his brow and inhaled deeply.

"Is something wrong, Inuyasha," Miroku asked, his face drawn in concern as he strode up next to Kagome, who was just as confused.

He made no reply, only fixed the youkai under his liquid amber gaze as he stalked forward for a better look. When he was merely a foot away, he stopped and waited for the demon to turn his attention toward him.

Shippou went rigid as he felt the demonic presence tower over him. He knew what the demon was waiting for; he knew precisely who the demon was, but despite the part of him that wanted to jump up and rejoice at their reunion, he simply could not move. The rational part of his mind, the part that had believed they were dead for the last 500 years—the part that had witnessed, first-hand, the Hell-storm of consequences their untimely demise had left behind—the part that was still very much a frightened child, sobbing into the shell of a dying priestess on a battlefield as empty and desolate as he was, had taken over.

He clenched his fists in the dirt as he shattered and rebuilt himself with each ragged breath—slashing through the delusions that had become the foundations of his memories. His _life_. Shippou trembled, his vocal capabilities abandoned in a war between logic and ugly fact.

It was Kirara that finally approached him. Cautiously, she padded over to him on tiny paws and stood nose to nose with the traumatized kitsune, forcing him to look at her. He might have pulled away from her then, but the look in her eyes was so sincere, so thankful that Shippou discovered he could not look away. Forest green clashed with pleading crimson spheres, and Shippou was astounded at what he found there. It was not the scorn or bitter resentment that he secretly feared deep in his heart. It was hope. It was love. And Shippou found himself profoundly affected; his uncertainties vanished as he realized the truth of the matter.

They were lost. They needed him. He'd be damned if he failed them again.

With a heavy sigh, he drew the neko into his embrace and then guided her to rest on his shoulder, as he stood to meet the tense golden gaze fixed upon him with a newfound serenity. Neither spoke, for words were unnecessary as the moment fell into place around them. Finally, a slow smirk crept its way to Inuyasha's face and the barest hint of relief flashed in the half demon's eyes. "You stink like wolf, Shippou," he announced.

He couldn't help but grin a little. Some things never change. "It's good to see you, too, Inuyasha."

The instant that followed heard only a startled gasp from Kagome and the jangling of the rings on Miroku's staff as it fell to the ground. Shippou tossed an uneasy glance to his former companions, who stood frozen in mute shock, and fumbled over the fragments of thoughts that rushed him. What could he even say to them? What could he even say to _her_? "Kagome, I'm s—"

The breath was knocked from his body before he could utter another sound. Stunned, he looked down to find that Kagome had trapped him in a bone-crushing hug. He smiled a genuine smile, the first in far too long, and he felt his heart unclench a little as he brought his arms down gently to rest around her. "Don't," she muttered, sobbing into his chest. "Don't you dare apologize."

Yusuke, who was never very comfortable with crying girls, turned away then and shared a meaningful look with Kurama. They backed away then, each in a different direction, intent on finding Hiei and Sango before anything else did.

Kuwabara wasn't nearly as subtle. "Hey, what the heck is going on here?" He asked Genkai, annoyed and exasperated. "What, they know this guy now? And where are _they_ going?" He sighed heavily; no one ever told him anything.

"Come on, nitwit," she began with a wry smile and made to lead him away from the reunited group. "Let's go find the others. This moment is not ours to share."

Miroku cast a grateful look at their retreating forms before rushing to greet the kitsune himself. He dropped a comforting hand onto the fox demon's shoulder and cast him a heartfelt and reassuring look, which Shippou gladly returned.

"…Oh, Shippou," Kagome hiccupped, still crying into him. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry…"

"Shh, don't cry," he whispered. After several minutes had passed, she quieted and pulled away to regard him soberly. With her blue-gray eyes still brimming with tears, and her nose running, she took him by the arm. "Let's go," she said weakly and looked to Inuyasha, who nodded in agreement. "We have a lot to talk about."

* * *

The first thing Sango noticed, as her awareness slowly returned to her, was not the deadly silence that filled the glade she occupied, nor the nauseating migraine steadily creeping its way in on her. It wasn't the extreme discomfort of dust up her nose or the demonic aura she would have normally felt and reacted to in an instant. No, the only thing Sango noticed in her pre-concious euphoria was heat--all-encompassing, soothing, warmth that offered her comfort she hadn't known since she was just a small child. For the briefest of moments, she was no longer the battle weary soldier carrying the vengeance of a dead village in her heart. In fact, until a rough growl sounded from beneath her and chased away the remnants of her illusion, Sango had almost fooled herself into thinking her nightmare of a life had been just that—a nightmare. 

Almost. Wait a minute…_beneath_ her?

Sango's eyes snapped open and bitter reality crushed her like a tidal wave. The events of her previous activities rushed her senses, and a strangled gasp escaped her lips as she realized that not only was she still in the presence of the youkai she'd been fighting, but, much to her utter embarrassment, she was currently in a rather…uncomfortable position with said youkai.

"You will remove yourself this instant, _human_," the demon sneered, his tone dripping with venom. Apparently, the blast that had taken them both by surprise had also sent them tumbling end over end down the slope of a nearby hill. The end result was a messy heap of demon and demon slayer, in a mass of tangled limbs and sweat. Needless to say, Hiei was not happy.

Then again, neither was Sango. "Gladly," she replied stiffly as she set out to disentangle herself from the hostile demon's form—only to discover that despite her mind's wishes, her body would not comply. She couldn't move. Oh Gods, why couldn't she move?

"Now, woman!" Hiei snapped impatiently.

"I'm trying," she began heatedly, attempting to keep the rising panic out of her voice. "It's not as though you couldn't…" Sango trailed off, allowing a small smirk to creep its way to her lips as she realized that she wasn't alone in her predicament. "You can't move, can you?"

Hiei scowled. "Hn," he ground out harshly. True though it may be, he'd rather cut off his own arm than admit it to her. Whoever had dared to launch such an attack was going to pay dearly for putting him in such a compromising situation. It was bad enough that the girl had made him lose control like she had, but now to be stuck with her here like this—her body molded to his so…_intimately_, her face nestled into the crook of his neck, her breath playing across the hollow of his throat—and he, with no possible means of escape due to his own weakness; it was just too much for his pride to handle at the moment.

With a rather rude snort, Hiei summoned the power of the jagan. He might not be able to move, but that wouldn't stop him from trying. Hiei focused his telekinetic abilities on the girl, intent on removing her as quickly and painfully as possible. The jagan glowed and slowly the exterminator's limp body began to lift. He smirked triumphantly at her startled cry and prepared to send the irritated demon slayer careening into the nearest tree.

Oh, if it were that simple.

Abruptly, the jagan froze, and Hiei realized his mistake. It seemed his current handicap was not limited to his physical capabilities. Sango dropped like a marionette with its strings cut, and a loud crack followed by the sudden gush of warmth across his face let the demon know that not only had her violent descent managed to land her in an even more suggestive position than before, but the impact of her skull to his face had effectively broken his nose.

Okay, so Houdini he was not.

"Ouch," Sango groaned. "Any more bright ideas," she quipped dryly.

Hiei growled viciously. Oh, if looks could kill…

"Listen here, pal," Sango huffed indignantly, "if you think I'm any happier about this than you are, you've got another thing coming!"

"Silence, girl," he snapped furiously. "It's bad enough to endure the feel of your human filth; I'll not suffer the annoyance of your incessant prattling, as well!"

"Don't you '_silence' _me, you arrogant jackass!" Sango exclaimed, the anger and frustration from the day's events leaking into her voice. "In case you haven't noticed, this whole thing is your fault! If you hadn't attacked me to begin with we wouldn't have been caught off guard!"

Hiei clenched his teeth angrily, a move he almost instantly regretted when he felt a jolt of intense pain from his newly shattered nose. His eyes watered involuntarily even as he willed the discomfort away, and he set his jaw in a stubborn line, annoyed at the note of truth in her words. "Yes, well when weakling human girls such as yourself wander into a demon infested forest, the attacks should come as no surprise. Even you should understand the natural order of things—the weak are destined to subservience. The fact that you are still alive is an astounding testament to pure, dumb luck."

"Jerk!" Sango fumed.

"Oh, very clever. Did you come up with that all by yourself?" So did Hiei.

"Perhaps, I should come back at a later time," a new, but familiar, voice sounded from behind them, causing a startled gasp to slip from the slayer's mouth. The arguing ceased abruptly, and had they been able to, both Sango and Hiei might have jumped; they were so caught up in their bickering, neither had noticed the demon close in on them. "Forgive me," he chuckled out. "I didn't mean to interrupt."

Hiei narrowed his eyes dangerously as he detected his teammate's obvious amusement with the situation. "Kurama," he warned, barely containing his rage. "I'm sure you'll find it much more difficult to laugh once I've cut out your tongue. Now, remove this human at once!"

"There's no need to be violent," Kurama replied, clearly not intimidated, as he made his way over to their line of vision and knelt beside them, taking in the damage. Between the vivid string of bruises forming around Sango's neck and Hiei's black eyes and bloody nose, Kurama really wasn't sure which one looked worse. "Honestly, Hiei," he sighed and took a handkerchief from his pocket to stem the continuous flow of blood from the demon's nose. "Can't you get along with anyone?"

He had half a mind to leave them there like that. Kurama had a very good idea as to what had transpired between the two and was also quite sure that Hiei had initiated the incident. It would have served him right to spend a little time with the consequences of his actions, and had it not been for the look of intense mortification on the slayer's face, Kurama might very well have done it.

"Hn."

"I take he's a friend of yours," Sango asked irritably as she fought to suppress the burning in her cheeks to a minimum. She did not think it was possible to have been embarrassed any more than she had already been that day. She was obviously mistaken.

Kurama allowed himself a small smile. "Sango, this is Hiei. He works with Yusuke, Kuwabara, and myself from time to time. Hiei, this is Sango. She and her friends are…guests of ours, for the time being." Kurama offered in the way of a quick introduction as he leaned forward for a better look at their circumstances. "You're unable to move," he stated more than asked.

"Brilliant assessment, fox," Hiei snapped, frustrated at the reminder of his current state of affairs.

Kurama made no response but brought a hand up to rest at his chin and looked thoughtful for a moment. He had seen this attack before, though it had been quite some time, he was certain of it. He'd make sure to question the kitsune about it later, but for now he would keep that piece of information to himself.

"How long will this last?" Sango asked much more politely than her fire demon acquaintance. Her anxiety had subsided when she realized that Kurama was in no way concerned about their circumstances. Not that she entirely trusted the spirit fox, but she'd come to accept that he had no intention of killing her—at least not yet.

Kurama reached out and began to disentangle the two. "It is impossible to say, but if you're able to speak it should not be much more than an hour," Kurama ventured, as he finally managed to roll the limp demon slayer off of the impatient fire demon and on to her back. "You are incredibly lucky, you know," he ignored the curt snort from Hiei. "This attack was designed specifically to stun, not kill. It's an illusionary trick, dependent upon photosensitivity. The light from the blast pulses in such a way that causes the neural passages in the visual processing center of the brain to…short circuit, if you will. The result is a deep paralysis, triggered by a series of abnormal electrical discharges within the motor cortex. The frequency of the strobe effect, and as such the believability of the overall illusion, is determined by the amount of spirit energy put into it. When fed enough, it actually simulates death. Ingenious, really."

Hiei scowled. He didn't give a damn how ingenious Kurama thought it was; whoever did it was going to wish they had just killed him by the time he was through. "Well, I sincerely hope that ingenuity will be worth it when I'm dancing on their entrails."

Kurama sent him a disapproving glance but said nothing. There was no reasoning with Hiei when he was like this, and Kurama knew it would only cause further damage to try. He sighed as he lifted Sango over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, ignoring the squeak of protest from the immobile demon slayer. He peered down at the fire apparition. "Are you going to come peacefully, or shall I leave you to return on your own?" He questioned, though he already knew what Hiei's answer would be.

However, before he could give it he found himself hoisted up over familiar shoulders in much the same manner as the demon slayer had been. Hiei growled low in his throat, indignant at the notion of being manhandled. "If you value the use of your limbs you will unhand me at once, _detective_," the demon sneered.

"Suck it up, three-eyes," Yusuke said wryly, as he fell into step behind Kurama. "I'm in no mood."

Surprisingly, Hiei made no further protest and gave only a quiet "hn," in reply. Truthfully, he was in no mood, either. Besides, whether he liked it or not it was in his best interests to return with them. No doubt that before long, every lower-class demon within five miles would smell his blood and come snooping around for dinner, and Hiei had no intention of meeting his end in the jowls of such beasts.

With merely a discontented grunt, the awkward group made their way up the hill and toward the temple grounds.

* * *

"We have an agreement, then?" The room was thick with anticipation, and the words lingered in the air like smoke as Koenma settled his attention on the priestess. 

The Reikai prince had been waiting for them by the time they all returned to the shrine, and after a few awkward introductions and explanations, a tense reunion, and a great deal of situating, they set to the business at hand. It was obvious that both groups would be pursuing the jewel; now, it was simply a question of whether they would be doing so as enemies or allies.

It was a long, drawn out process that, to be perfectly honest, Shippou paid little attention to. He couldn't help it; it was all he could do to contain himself. His family had returned to him, alive and well, and Shippou found concentrating on anything else to be nearly impossible. Hell, he couldn't take his eyes off them, Kagome in particular. Though he had missed all of his friends, it was her absence he felt most keenly. Especially when he spent so much time in the presence of Kouga.

Shippou's heart clenched at the thought. The wolf prince had never truly forgiven himself for his role in Kagome's death, and Shippou often wondered if he'd made the right decision in not telling Kouga that she would be reborn in roughly 500 years. Looking back now, at the atrocities he'd borne witness to over the years in her name, he realized that, no, it had not been the right decision. He swallowed back the guilt that threatened to rise in his throat. No, Shippou couldn't change that now anymore than he could have stopped it in the first place. At least, it seemed that the girl had no memory of it, and at the moment, it was the best he could hope for.

Kagome drew a nervous breath, and shared a knowing look with the rest of her companions. She knew in her heart that this was the best way, but she had no intention of making the decision for them.

Miroku was the first to respond, although it took him a moment to recover from all he had learned. Despite his training as a monk, it was a bit of a shock to be presented with indisputable evidence of the machinations of the afterlife. Until Shippou had come back into the picture and verified what they had been telling him, he hadn't entirely believed everything his hosts had said, most specifically Botan, whom he now felt inclined to keep on his good side. _So much for getting in a good feel every now and then_. With a heavy sigh, the monk nodded his approval.

Kagome smiled and looked to Sango, whose eyes were fixed on a certain disagreeable fire apparition. She didn't like him, not one bit, and she trusted him even less, but if it meant finding her brother she wasn't about to pass up the chance—no matter how much she disliked them. Sango averted her eyes back to Kagome and gave her hesitant affirmation, glad to see that the effects of the magic were beginning to ebb when her entire head didn't flop forward from lack of control.

Kagome drew a heavy breath. _Now for the hard part_, she thought as she turned to face her most difficult obstacle. However, much to her surprise, Inuyasha hadn't voiced his objection outright. As a matter of fact, the hanyou had been amazingly quiet during the exchange, and his expression told her that he was actually, seriously, considering the offer.

And he was, too. Inuyasha was stubborn, crass, quick tempered, and wholly without tact, but he was no fool. As much as he hated the idea of separating his humans into three different worlds with no immediate way to reach them, he also realized that this was probably the best and quickest way to find the jewel and destroy Naraku. If nothing else there was power in numbers, an advantage they'd had in the feudal age, but he had been too much of a bullheaded ass to draw upon. He had no intention of making the same mistake again.

Amber eyes clashed with hopeful gray, and Inuyasha's expression softened as he realized that the most important reason for accepting, however, was not about strategy or advantage. It was much more simple than that. Wherever Kagome went, so did he. Always.

"Feh, whatever," he muttered in gruff acceptance. "But let's get one thing straight first, _junior,_" he said as he rounded on the Reikai prince. "When this is over, that jewel is coming with us."

"Inuyasha," Kagome warned, only to be interrupted by Koenma. "No, it's a valid concern, Kagome," he began choosing his next words carefully, not wanting to incite the hanyou's anger by telling him that when this was over, the jewel would most likely be locked away in the deepest pits of spirit world, if not destroyed. "The fate of the jewel is not to be decided by you or I, at this time. Right now, let's focus on finding the missing fragments before anything else does and worry about the outcome when the time arrives."

Inuyasha grumbled but made no further protest. Kagome sensed his acquiescence, and a soft smile lit the priestess' features. She breathed a sigh of relief. "All right, I guess we're in."

Koenma let out the breath he did not know he'd been holding. _Well, that went much_ _better than expected_, he thought gratefully. He honestly hadn't been looking forward to the unpleasant alternative should they choose to refuse. Reikai prison was no place for human females. "Very well," he smiled. "Consider yourself teammates."

The next morning came all too early, and Yusuke wearily stumbled out of the shrine into the crisp dawn air. "Stupid sun," he mumbled. Once, just _once_ he wished he could get a mission that started around noon. He yawned widely and stretched to work the kinks out of his muscles; if he was lucky, maybe Yukina would have whipped up something to eat before they left.

For once, it seemed the spirit detective was, indeed, lucky. The delicious smell of omelets infiltrated his nostrils and beckoned him to turn back inside. _Okay, so maybe today won't completely suck, _he thought, as he made his way toward the source of the enticing aroma. If he would have been paying attention, he might have noticed the voices just a few feet away from him. Unfortunately he wasn't, and as he rounded the corner he smacked directly into the girl, sending her crashing to the ground in an unceremonious heap.

Kagome blinked to focus looked up to find Yusuke shaking his head. "We gotta stop meeting like this," he said with a chuckle as he held out a hand to help her up. "You okay?"

"I'll survive," she said with a smile that, Yusuke couldn't help but notice, seemed a little forced. He cocked a suspicious eyebrow and peered into her face, not entirely convinced. "You sure," he asked warily. Now that he was looking, he could see that she had been crying, and he realized with the force of her impact that wherever she had come from, she must have left in a hurry.

"Kagome, I…" Shippou entered the hallway hastily and abruptly shut his mouth when he caught sight of Yusuke. "…I think breakfast is ready," he finished, clearly not completing the statement he had originally been planning to make.

"Yes, of course, breakfast," she replied quickly. "You'd better hurry, Yusuke. If you want anything to eat you'll have to beat Inuyasha to it; he can eat his weight in food." She promptly turned on her heal, then, and disappeared down the corridor.

Yusuke crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes. Who did they think they were fooling, here? He did not know exactly what those two were up to, but he knew damn well that it had nothing to do with breakfast. "Hey, fox boy," he said as Shippou had turned to follow the priestess.

The kitsune paused but did not turn around. "Yes?"

"You should hand that shard over to Koenma," Yusuke started, choosing his approach carefully. "If you still have it, that is."

Damn the kid was sharp when he wanted to be. Was it possible he'd overheard part of their conversation? Shippou doubted it but decided that discretion was best in any case. "It's been taken care of," he replied a bit cryptically.

"Good," Yusuke smirked. "I'd hate to think I couldn't trust you." Confident that his point had been made, the spirit detective moved on, his stomach as his guide, leaving a stunned Shippou to his own devices.

* * *

Koenma took a moment to look over his troop of wayward soldiers. Yusuke and Inuyasha were trading unusually vulgar insults; Kuwabara was professing his undying love to a blushing Yukina; Hiei was alternating nasty looks between Kuwabara and Shippou; Miroku was currently catching the business end of Botan's oar; and Sango was sharpening her blade menacingly while trying not to appear jealous at the monk's antics. Those who weren't in the midst of conflict were ambling back and forth between divvying up supplies and keeping the others in check, which Koenma couldn't help but notice they were failing at miserably. _So this is the fate of human kind_, he thought wryly. _We are in_ so _much trouble_. 

The Reikai prince cleared his throat loudly, demanding attention that, much to his chagrin, he did not get. Again, Koenma cleared his throat expectantly, and again he was met with no response. Finally, after another unsuccessful attempt to gain notice, Kurama intervened with a quiet "excuse me" that stopped everyone in their tracks. Koenma frowned. What happened to respect for authority? Oh well, he should be used to it with Yusuke by now.

"If you are all quite finished now, I'd like to get this show on the road," he stated with agitation.

"So who's stopping ya, toddler?" Yusuke asked with his usual flippancy.

Koenma pointedly avoided the barb about his typical childlike appearance, and continued on despite the raised eyebrows of those who had no idea what this _toddler_ business was about. "As I was saying," he began, stressing the last word. "In the interests of establishing trust I think it would be best to divide members from each respective group into the three teams evenly. Yusuke, I'd like for you, Genkai, Kagome, and Inuyasha to remain in the living world."

"Are you sure about this?" Kagome asked timidly, as both the detective and the hanyou snorted in irritation. "Yusuke and Inuyasha don't exactly get along."

"Then I'm sure they'll learn to," he replied in a tone that left no room for argument. "When the pieces of the Shikon jewel scattered across the pseudo-space, it's magic effectively left small distortions all along the border, leaving the human world vulnerable. According to spirit world intelligence, demons have been slipping through ever since. My father has posted a watch to police the barrier, but there's no telling how many demons have already made it through or how many ruptures have yet to be contained. I need Yusuke's strength here to defend those who cannot defend themselves, and seeing as Inuyasha is the strongest and most accustomed to the modern human world among you, I see no other alternative than to place him here as well."

"I see."

"Good. Now, Kuwabara?"

"Yes sir?"

"You have the ability to sense jewel shards as well as Kagome, correct?"

"Uh, yeah I think so. I felt that one yesterday pretty good."

"All right, I'd like for you, Botan, Miroku, and Sango to search Spirit world."

"Now wait just a damn minute, junior," Inuyasha cut in abruptly and gestured to Hiei, Kurama, and Shippou. "How are they supposed to detect jewel fragments?"

"I was getting to that," Koenma stated in annoyance. "Hiei, can you sense the shards using the jagan?" The fire apparition gave a short, affirmative nod, though his attention was focused mostly on the kitsune who had rendered him utterly useless just hours before. It suddenly occurred to Koenma that this might not have been the wisest decision he could have made. Asking Hiei to work with anyone other than Kurama was always a potential medicine for disaster, but asking him to work with Shippou made it a certainty.

"With all due respect, Koenma," Kurama interjected, sensing his unease. "It may be beneficial to send some demonic ability with those venturing into the spirit realm." Inuyasha fervently agreed, and Kurama realized that his previous objection had nothing to do with their inability to detect pieces of the jewel.

And he was right, too. It was not that Inuyasha was concerned about them finding it; he was worried about what they would do to keep it when all was said and done. A demon was still a demon and much more susceptible to the dark influence of the jewel. As much as Inuyasha truly wanted to believe he could trust Shippou, he couldn't just dismiss the fact.

"If I may make a suggestion, sir," Kurama offered politely. "Perhaps it would be best to send Shippou with Kuwabara and the others, and we can take another in his stead."

"Who would you suggest?"

Kurama brought a hand to rest at his chin thoughtfully. They would need Botan as a guide no doubt, and the monk's holy powers would be a great asset in the spirit realm. To be honest, they really only had one choice. "We could take the slayer," he supplied quietly.

"WHAT!" Came the shocked, simultaneous exclamation from both Hiei and Sango.

"Have you lost your senses, fox?" Hiei snapped at the same time Sango voiced her objection. "You expect me to go with _him_?"

"We can't take a human female into Makai."

"He tried to k—" Sango stopped abruptly and turned to Hiei. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"She will be a liability," Hiei continued on, ignoring the exterminator's indignant response.

Sango narrowed her eyes. Who the hell did he think he was? He did not know the first thing about her abilities; she was a demon slayer, damn it, and no one's burden to bear! "I'm going," she said in quiet determination.

"Don't be a fool, girl," he growled, his attention suddenly redirected to her. "You won't last a day in the demon realm."

"I'm an accomplished demon exterminator and fully capable of taking care of myself," she spat.

"I'll not waste my time babysitting weak human girls," he said, getting angry now as well.

"Listen here you self-important little bastard," Sango began heatedly, going toe to toe with the demon. She rarely swore, but Gods, he was just so infuriating! "I don't need you or anyone else to _babysit_ me. I can hold my own!"

"You are not coming!"

"Just try to stop me!"

Kurama groaned. Why did it always have to be this way? "That is enough," he interrupted with a soft ferocity that left no room for discussion, and the argument ceased. "Now is not the time for petty quarreling. She is as qualified as any to accompany us."

Hiei scowled darkly and Sango could not help the satisfied grin that spread across her face at his expression. She'd show him just what this _weak human__girl _was capable of, even if it killed her.

"Hn, fine," he muttered irritably. "But I won't be blamed when she gets herself killed."

"If anything goes wrong, the responsibility will fall on me alone," Kurama responded, putting his comrade's concerns to rest.

"Very well, it's settled then," Koenma said. "Yukina, I'd like for you to remain here at the shrine. Your healing skills far surpass any of ours, and I fear we may need them."

"Yes, of course Koenma sir," the dainty apparition replied politely.

"Good. We will meet back here in three weeks time for Kagome to purify any shards we've collected and to compare findings. Any questions?"

"What about the demon?" Yusuke inquired. "Shouldn't we send someone after it?"

"You won't have to," Miroku chimed in. "Naraku's prime objective is retrieving the Shikon Jewel. Always. So long as we're pursuing the fragments we're bound to run across him."

"What about the kid?" Kuwabara questioned, unaware, as were all but Koenma and perhaps Hiei, of the particulars of the Inu-gumi's relationship with the boy.

Sango's face fell and Shippou visibly stiffened. There hadn't been time to discuss the circumstances of his involvement with his formerly lost companions, and he feared their reaction—especially Sango's. She would not understand, he knew. Kohaku was the most important person in the world to the slayer, and despite the fact that he was beyond saving, she would die before she stopped trying.

Koenma cast a quick sideways glance to the kitsune, sensing his distress, and paused in his speech thoughtfully. He was not entirely sure where their arrangement stood now, but he was certain that it would be a mistake to discuss the matter given their present company. Besides, as long as the kitsune was still willing to aid them, he saw no need to press the issue at the moment. "The original mission still stands."

Shippou sighed in relief. He'd tell them eventually, if necessary, but it would be on his terms.

"If there is nothing else, then, I'll bid you all farewell. Good luck, and God speed." With that, the Reikai prince turned to leave them to their goodbyes, but not before pulling Botan aside. Seeing this Miroku took the opportunity to catch Sango before she could disappear.

Sango felt the grip on her arm and turned to regard the monk suspiciously. "Are you sure about this," he whispered, averting his eyes to the sulking fire apparition.

She caught his meaning and gave him a reassuring smile, touched at his concern. "Don't worry about me," she said softly and brought a hand to rest behind the ears of the kitten on her shoulder. "I have Kirara with me. I'll be fine."

"Be careful," he said softly and let go of her wrist. "You too," she replied. She turned away then, leaving Miroku to ponder what secrets the spirit realm had in store.

Botan, however, knew exactly what secrets the spirit world held, and to say she was enthused about what lay ahead of them would have been a lie. "You wanted to speak with me, Koenma sir?" She asked once they were alone.

"Yes. I'm sure I don't need to tell you how important it is for you to return here in three weeks. Reikai is not made for the living, and I cannot say what effects prolonged exposure may have on the mortal coil."

"Yes sir, I understand."

"Also, I think you should know…Charon is missing."

Botan gasped in shock. "That can't be. It…it isn't possible," she stammered. "Who's regulating the traffic of malevolent souls?"

"The SDF is doing what they can for now, but with the barrier breach, my father's forces are spread thin," Koenma sighed heavily. "I suggest you head for the river Styx as soon as possible. It is my belief that he is under the influence of a tainted fragment. If he is, in fact, in possession of a jewel shard, we need to get it from him before there are permanent ramifications; exercise great caution. We're not talking about a low level demon here. Albeit minor, Charon is still a deity, and his powers will be augmented drastically, so be prepared for a struggle."

"You can count on us, sir," the grim reaper responded with resolve. She left him to his own devices then, in search of her team of miscreant warriors.

"Good luck, Botan," Koenma whispered after her retreating form. "And be careful."

And so it began.

* * *

_A/N: This chapter marks the end of the really long chapters, as well as the first session, so to speak. The next few chapters will be a bit shorter and more action-oriented, so they should come quicker. **Also, I'm 99 percent sure this fic will go up in rating (mostly due to standard anime violence) starting in the next chapter**. Thanks so much for your patience and reviews. They mean a lot and help to keep me motivated._

_Concerning pairings…I've thought a lot about this, and I'm still not 100 sure. I was originally going to make this a Kagome/Yusuke, but after I started there seemed to be a brief surge in Kag/Yus fics, so I don't really know if I want to go that route anymore. What do you guys think I should do here? Any input is welcome._

_**Thanks to my reviewers: saiyanprincesscat, smile7499, MirokuLuvr, cookiiex, Gan Xingba, Coke-48-Kenshin, sweetthing88, Psycho Spaghetti, Guyute 24's fan (blush), and Ruri-Ruri**! _

_Thanks so much guys, your reviews really make my day! Hope you enjoyed! Thanks again everyone, and please don't forget to review on the way out!_


	7. Chapter Seven

_(Pokes head out from behind beta, looking VERY guilty)_

_Um…hello? GAH! (Dodges rotten fruit from angry mob)_

_Okay, Okay—So I know that I really suck, and I've been AWOL for the last six months, and you all have every right to hate me. And I wouldn't blame you if you do. BUT, I'm back now, and as a peace offering I give you chapter seven. Enjoy!_

_**Chapter Seven**_

Sango shifted her supply pack uncomfortably and sighed as she watched the sun begin its descent. The day had been long, a feeling that was only compounded by the thick, uncomfortable silence they had settled into after leaving the human world that morning. Not that Sango really minded that much; it was better than trying to hold awkward conversation with Kurama or enduring the insults of a certain short, red-eyed, pain in the ass.

_The pompous jerk_, she inwardly sneered. _Just who does he think he is to…_Sango stoppedabruptly in her tracks_. No_, she shook her head roughly and fell back into step behind Kurama, adamantly refusing to let her thoughts turn to him again. He'd taken up far too much of her time already, and she wasn't about to lose focus of her surroundings because some smart-assed, ego-driven, jackass knew just how to get under her skin. Not when she was neck deep in a world full of nothing but demons—her father had trained her better than that.

Still, it was strange; the exterminator found herself oddly comforted in the quiet simplicity of this unusual realm. Sango hadn't known what to expect from an entire world of demons but quickly discovered that, much to her surprise, the demon world was not entirely unlike her own. The territory was a broad, untainted landscape of limitless, golden prairie that spilled out from the forest edge they'd been following and rolled and dipped over itself as it swayed in the gentle breeze. Serene and beautiful, it wasn't at all what she might have imagined the youkai dominion to be.

Sango shifted again, careful not to disturb the sleeping neko in residence on her shoulder, and sighed. She was getting tired, and her feet were beginning to feel like blocks of lead, but she'd rather lick the sweat off a hill troll's ass before she let either of them know it. Well, mostly just Hiei—_arrogant, little…AGH! Damn it_, she was doing it again!

"I can carry it a while, if you like."

Sango fought the urge to jump at the sound of his voice but couldn't avoid the soft flush that painted her cheeks. Damn, she hated being caught off guard. "Huh?"

Kurama grinned cheekily at her expression. "The pack," he explained. "I can carry it a while; you seem a bit uncomfortable."

"No, thank you," she replied a bit stiffly and pointedly directed her attention straight ahead. "I'm fine."

The fox cocked his eyebrow suspiciously and kept his studious gaze transfixed on her, though she refused to meet it. Finally, after a few moments of deliberate silence, he sighed and looked away. "You know, you have nothing to prove," he ventured quietly.

Sango faltered briefly in her steps. "Don't I?" She countered, letting her eyes drift unintentionally to the whisper of dark flitting from treetop to treetop at a distance ahead of them. He'd been among the trees all day, no more than a vapor trail to the naked eye, and Sango could only assume he was avoiding any unnecessary contact with her. _Good_.

"No," Kurama responded matter-of-factly. "You shouldn't let him get to you, it's just his way. If he truly thought you inept, you would have never stepped foot in this realm."

"I don't care what he thinks," Sango snorted defensively. "If he thinks at all…the jerk," she muttered in afterthought.

Kurama chuckled knowingly, which only served as fuel for her ire. "What?" She demanded. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing…nothing," he said as he brought his hands up in a placating gesture and fought to stifle the laughter that threatened to slip from his lips. The slayer sent him a withering glare, and Kurama thought it best to change the subject before he lost it and laughed outright. "It's getting late," he said thoughtfully and looked to the sky. "We should stop and make camp soon."

"Don't stop on my account," Sango replied stubbornly. "I'll be fine."

"How about on mine," he responded, perhaps a bit coolly. "Unlike Hiei, my body requires frequent nourishment and periodic rest. I'd like to do so before we reach the Southern provinces."

"Oh," she muttered quietly and averted her gaze, a bit embarrassed at her assumption. The silence stretched between them again, and Sango began to fidget slightly, stealing curious glances at the kitsune. He had intrigued her from the moment she'd woken to find him dressing her wounds. By all outward appearances he was human, but Sango had known differently, she could feel it. Unlike Miroku's or Kagome's abilities to see and sense demonic auras, Sango depended on raw instinct, fine-tuned through years of demon slaying and self-discipline. She'd come to rely on her instincts whole-heartedly when sensing youkai, and they had yet to fail her.

Kurama was different, though—unlike any creature she had encountered before, she knew. Not human, though not entirely a demon, it seemed; he lingered in the space between, a quiet avatar of the lines that separated, yet bound them all.

It unnerved her to no end.

Sango couldn't help it, really; it was simply in her nature to mistrust. She scrutinized him openly, frankly curious about what he was and how he had come to be. She might have gone so far as to ask him, too, but at precisely that moment he froze, and Kirara leapt from her shoulder with a hiss, wreathed in flame as she transformed to land in front of her mistress in a defensive crouch.

Without a second thought she dropped her pack and produced her katana. "What is it?" She asked in a hush.

"Nothing you need concern yourself with, girl," a voice interrupted from above. Hiei dropped gracefully in their midst, blade in hand, and set her in a particularly icy glare. "We don't have the time to baby-sit meddlesome humans, right now. You just focus on staying out of the way, and let the real fighters handle things."

Sango sent him a glare as nearly as vicious as his own and clamped down on the retort that automatically jumped to her tongue. Now wasn't the time.

"Jackal demons," Kurama supplied rather calmly as he readied his whip. "Closing in fast." He might have elaborated further, but at that moment the beasts began emerging from the cover of tall prairie grass in droves, snarling and slavering grotesquely as they locked the four in swirling, piss-yellow eyes, mad with hunger.

"I don't suppose this is the welcoming committee," Sango asked Kurama in quiet sarcasm. He grinned wryly. "Hardly."

With that, the creatures surged forth in a desperate tsunami of fangs and claws, and the carnage began.

* * *

Sensui stretched out comfortably in his favorite chair, a glass of fine wine in hand as he gazed out from his penthouse apartment at the brightly colored lights that dotted the dusky horizon. The city was alive with the bustle of weekend nightlife; cars and couples scurried from here to there in pursuit of frivolous indulgence as the lonely stumbled their way through lousy bars and cheap hotels for the empty company of a one-night stand. Down darkened alleyways vagrants dug through trash bins and fought over half-empty bottles of sake, hoping to drown painful reminders of their own degradation and filth in the potent swill of rice wine. 

_Vermin_, he thought in disgust.

_I suppose we'll be doing them a favor, really._

_Is that important to you, Hitoshi?_

_No. It is simply a statement of fact. They would destroy themselves eventually, anyway. They already are—war, famine; the very air they breathe is a poison they like to call progress. Just look at what they've done to the world around them, Shinobu. They are ravenous beasts who rape the earth and defile its creatures out of greed. I have no sympathy for such evil._

A gentle rapping interrupted his thoughts, and Sensui turned his head just slightly to see the shadows sweep over the pale face of his assistant. "Is it time, Mr. Itsuki?"

"Yes, Mr. Sensui. It's just as you've said," Itsuki began softly. "He's divided them."

"And the spirit detective?" He asked nonchalantly, swirling the wine in his glass.

"He is making his way into the city as we speak, sir, with the hanyou, the priestess, and the psychic Genkai."

Sensui smirked triumphantly; it was just as he had anticipated. That fool Koenma couldn't even blow his nose without Sensui knowing exactly when and where he'd do it. He simply knew him too well. "Good. Send Sniper and Doki to welcome them. I think it's about time we got their attention, don't you?"

The Gatekeeper hesitated, and Sensui pretended not to notice the brief doubt that crossed the demon's face. "Yes, of course, Mr. Sensui. I'll see to it right away," he finally replied before swiftly making his exit.

_Did you see that, Shinobu? Did you see the look on that faggot's face? The son of a bitch doesn't trust us. We should kill him now, before he turns on us and fucks everything up!_

_You shut your mouth, Kazuya! Itsuki loves us! He would never betray us! _

_You shut up, bitch!_

_That is enough, Kazuya. Naru is right; Itsuki is many things, but he is not disloyal. His end will come only when it is time and not before._

_But he suspects something, Shinobu. I can see it in his eyes._

_Of course he does. Itsuki is no fool, he knows exactly what will come of this. However, no great cause comes without sacrifice, and Itsuki knows it well. He is prepared to give himself for it, just as we are. Make no mistake, it is not us he distrusts, it is them._

_He has reason to distrust. He thinks our alliance is a mistake, that we should not have abandoned our original plans. I am not certain he is incorrect, Shinobu. Doki is unstable, as are all of Yokoshima's men. They jeopardize our cause, I fear._

_Your concerns are valid, Minoru. We are but a diversion for Yokoshima, but the role we play means little in the final outcome. Our purpose is, essentially, already served; the barrier is breached. Now we must do what we can to facilitate its ultimate destruction, and if aiding Yokoshima in his rise to power accomplishes just that, we are obligated to do so. It is justice_ _best served. What better way to eliminate the human race than by giving rise to a demon born from and fed by their own sins? I can think of no other more suited to lead their downfall._

_What of the other, Shinobu? And this jewel? _

…_We will collect the shards for now, if only to keep them from the detective. However, we will not turn them over blindly. I wish to know more of this Naraku before we simply hand over his bauble._

And there in the dark, his mind quieted. A small smile tugged at his lips as he swallowed the last of his wine, content to watch the last days of men from the shadow of his heart.

* * *

Sango grimaced as the keening wails of the jackal she had just dispatched split the twilight air. She was actually beginning to feel sorry for them; it wasn't really a fight so much as group suicide. The animals were belligerent and clumsy, flinging themselves into battle with no sense of self-preservation. 

She struck again, letting the continuous cracking of Kurama's whip and the thundering in her chest lull away the agonizing cries of their opponents. This was not the time for sympathy. On the battlefield, pity was a mere breath away from the darkness of eternal slumber.

Sango spun, slicing the beast to her left through the midsection as it leapt at her, while Kirara took the head of another to her right. From the corner of her eye she could see the others fairing well. Kurama struck with cool precision. Hiei seemed little more than a whisper of light, leaving a trail of bloody devastation in his wake. Neither one looked in the slightest bit winded. Unfortunately, Sango was not quite as blessed. The assault was relentless, and with her body still recovering from its initial injuries, she really wasn't sure just how much longer she could go. It was time to put an end to this.

"Get back!" She cried as she swung herself onto Kirara's back and took to the air. Kurama withdrew without hesitation while Hiei continued in his counterassault, ignoring her entirely. _Suit yourself_, she thought and dropped four of her most potent poison bombs directly into the fray.

A great, black cloud billowed up from the earth and swallowed up the last sunlight, forcing Kirara to land some distance away to escape the smoke. Sango dismounted, and Kurama approached them from the edge of the wood.

"Where's Hiei?" He asked as he scanned the toxic cloud for signs of life.

Sango shrugged, turning her attention to the cloud of smoldering toxins behind her. "Don't worry," she began confidently. "I'm sure he's fine. The poison in those bombs isn't really stout enough to affect a youkai of his strength."

Her words were convincing enough, and Kurama nodded, though his gaze remained anxious. Still, as the moments passed and the ash began to settle, there was no trace of the fire apparition, and Sango couldn't help but second guess herself. What if she had been wrong? True, the concoction was not her deadliest brew, but in mass quantities it could still prove harmful. What had she been thinking? Two bombs would have been perfectly sufficient to dispatch the lesser demons. What if he had inhaled too much of the toxin and fallen unconscious? Or worse. _Oh Gods_, she thought in growing apprehension, what if she'd killed him? He might be a condescending ass, but that did not mean she wanted him dead.

Finally, Sango could take no more. "That's it," she said, securing her mask with a rough yank. "I'm going in."

Kurama quirked an eyebrow. "What happened to 'I'm sure he's fine'?" The slayer flushed visibly, and if he hadn't been concerned himself, Kurama would have been highly entertained with the unsuccessful stammering that followed. "Well, it's just...and he...well, it's not like I'm worried or anything! Oh, forget it!" She spun away from him, flustered and irritated and not at all anticipating the scowling, soot covered demon that had dropped directly in her path.

Sango squeaked in surprise as she found herself once again dangling in his grip. "Fool," he hissed, ignoring the startled reproach from Kurama and the warning yowl from Kirara. "I should split your skull right here," he growled, reaffirming his distaste with a rough shake. Hiei pierced her with a look that could have scalded the slayer from the inside, out; the demon was angry--very angry, and Sango squirmed helplessly, not entirely sure whether she should be afraid, relieved, or just down right pissed off.

"I told you to _move_," she choked.

His punishing grip only tightened. "And I told you to stay out of it, girl," he growled.

The glint in his eyes told Sango just how much he was enjoying her discomfort, and she decided right then that she had had just about enough of being at a disadvantage. Quick as light, she released the blade concealed on her forearm and pressed it firmly to his throat.

"You could snap my neck in two right now," she seethed, her speech haggard and broken. "But I'll be damned if I don't slit your throat wide open first."

Whatever reply Hiei might have made was abruptly cut off by the sharp crack of Kurama's whip as it struck the earth between them. "Enough," his voice was soft but carried the weight of a thousand waves breaking upon the shore. The kitsune was nearly as angry as they and twice as annoyed. "Your bickering is both childish and fruitless. When this mission is complete you may kill each other to your heart's content; until then I suggest you exhibit some measure of control and focus."

With a disgruntled "hn" the fire apparition dropped Sango right where she stood, smirking in satisfaction when she promptly hit the dirt, coughing and gasping for air. He stalked away, then, radiating malcontent as Kurama stooped to help the slayer to her feet.

"Are you all right?" Kurama inquired.

"Peachy," she husked, deliberately avoiding his assistance. "It's just his way, after all."

Kurama grimaced at the gesture. "Please, forgive me," he began, genuinely apologetic. "I don't know what's gotten into him, lately. May I see?"

She eyed him warily for a moment before finally giving in. Carefully, he tilted her chin up for a better look and hissed in sympathy. It looked bad--swollen and already bruised, he could see the indention of each of Hiei's fingers and immediately wanted to smack the fire apparition. She already didn't trust them, and Hiei was only making the situation worse. Kurama knew they would never collect all of the shards and survive the demon realm unless they learned to work together, to rely on one another as a team; at this rate, it wasn't going to happen any time soon. He sighed, suddenly very tired. "There isn't much I can do for the bruising, but I can help with the pain and swelling, if you'd like."

* * *

"Tell me again why I gotta wear this crap," Inuyasha fussed as he fidgeted with the cap on his head. Upon leaving the shrine that morning, both Kagome and Genkai had insisted that the first order of business should focus on making Inuyasha presentable to the public eye. Naturally, Inuyasha protested vehemently, saying that there was absolutely nothing wrong with his attire and that they could all just kiss his ass. 

The ordeal that followed involved a record number of 'sits' and enough swearing to make even Yusuke proud, and Kagome noted that it might have been easier to put a tuxedo on a mountain lion. However, a t-shirt, long coat, blue jeans, and a pair of shoes later, the battle came to a close. In the end, despite his utmost stubbornness, the mighty hanyou proved no match for the schoolgirl.

Suffice it to say, Inuyasha was not in a good mood.

"What's the matter, Fido?" Yusuke taunted, not for the first time that day. "Can't quite reach behind the ears?"

Inuyasha growled, plainly not amused. "Whoa now," Yusuke mocked, throwing his hands up in a placating gesture. "He's had his rabies shot, right?" He asked Kagome, who had neatly situated herself between the two.

"Stop treating me like dog, jackass!" The hanyou snapped, balling his fists in frustration. That little shit certainly was asking for it.

Kagome placed a comforting hand on Inuyasha's shoulder and sighed. "Honestly, Yusuke," she began, exasperated. "Don't provoke him."

"Hey, I'm just—OW! Damn it, Grandma!" Yusuke yelped, nursing the newly formed, rather large knot on the back of his head.

"Don't be an idiot," she responded flatly. Inuyasha smiled smugly, and Yusuke sent them both a dark glare, muttering something that sounded suspiciously like 'old bitch,' under his breath.

"So, what's the plan?" Kagome inquired, flopping down on one of the double beds in their cheap hotel room. For the sake of discretion, Kagome and Genkai had decided that, for the time, it would be best to set up base on the edge of the Tokyo. The lodging was reasonable, the location was inconspicuous, and the guest list was sparse. It was perfect.

"Yeah," Inuyasha said gruffly. "I ain't stayin' cooped up in this shithole all night."

"Damn," Yusuke said, stretching out lazily next to Kagome with remote in hand. He turned on the small television set, taking great pleasure in watching Inuyasha jump back in obvious surprise. "And here I thought we might get to know each other better, maybe play a little fetch."

Inuyasha sniffed his trademark "feh," but found he'd much rather devote his attention to the strange box with flashing pictures than fight with that idiot, anyway.

"We really don't have many options open to us yet," Genkai replied, ignoring Yusuke and Inuyasha altogether and looking quite thoughtful. "We could pay a visit to some of the usual suspects, see what they've heard."

"Like who?" Yusuke chimed in, though he was not really listening. Why discuss particulars when he could channel surf? "Commercial, commercial, soaps, cartoons, commercial, news…"

"Stop, right there," Genkai interrupted, her interest suddenly piqued. "Turn it up."

The detective raised a dark eyebrow but did as she asked, finding nothing else of particular interest.

…_**Local police have found the body of 33 year-old Jiro Matsuo on the banks of the Arakawa River this evening. Matsuo, a third-shift dock worker employed at Yumenoshima Marina, was one of the four employees reported missing after yesterday's bizarre destruction of Matsushima Port, involving, what many eye witnesses claim to have been, a 'sea monster'. Police officials have yet to issue a press release concerning the alleged 'sea monster' or the specific cause of Mr. Matsuo's death. The whereabouts of Matsuo's co-workers remain unknown.**_

_**In other news…**_

The room grew quiet as they all exchanged apprehensive glances.

"Well," Kagome spoke after a moment. "I guess it's off to the harbor."

* * *

Inuyasha curled his lip in obvious disgust as he flicked the nuisance from his shoulder. 

"Man, you guys got a hell of a bug problem in this place."

"Remind me to call pest control," Yusuke commented dryly.

"It's not usually like this," Kagome said, apparently a bit confused. Even the shadiest parts of Tokyo, which were very few, were cleaner than this, and Kagome had never seen an infestation like this one out in the plain, open air.

However, as they made their way down the back streets toward the harbor, their surroundings grew steadily worse. A dark malice hung thick in the air, making it stifling and humid. Kagome felt her skin crawl and unconsciously huddled closer to Inuyasha. For the first time in her life, she felt truly uncomfortable in her own city.

"No, it's not," Genkai supplied quietly. "These are insects of the demon world, similar to what you faced in the incident with the Saint Beasts, Yusuke. They must have escaped through the distortions in the barrier."

"Something tells me pest control won't have a spray for that."

"Not likely, dimwit," she countered. "I suspect our sea monster friend is another of these refugees."

"Then we'll just have to kick his ass right back to Makai," Yusuke responded with determination. "No way am I just gonna let Godzilla come in and make a meal outta my town!"

It was several more minutes before they came upon the cleanup crew. Crouching behind a pallet of large crates, they paused to assess the situation. Yusuke gave a low whistle as he took in the damage. Sea monster or no, whatever had come through there had torn the place to pieces, destroyed cargo and docks alike, and most of the buildings had been completely ransacked.

Inuyasha snorted disdainfully. "It was looking for something," he observed.

"Jewel shards," Kagome replied, suddenly distracted.

"Probably," Yusuke said, as though it were obvious.

"No," she said quickly, getting riled. "No, I mean I _feel_ jewel shards. Two of them."

"How close?" Inuyasha asked excitedly, his hand already gripping the hilt of Tetsusaiga.

The priestess took a deep breath and closed her eyes a moment to sort the jumble of energy in her mind. "One across the bay, I think, and the other—"

Kagome stopped short and drew a sharp breath as she spun to face their newest threat. The strange energy washed over her, then, in tiny electric pulses and settled in her spine. It left her feeling vaguely disoriented, and she could tell by the way the others tensed around her, the way Inuyasha instinctively stood before her, Tetsusaiga drawn, that they had felt it, too.

She could see him, there in the shadows, leaning against the side of an old warehouse. One hand stuffed into his jacket pocket, the other flipping the glittering fragment they sought and snatching it from the air in a lazy fashion. From what Kagome could see, he was not much older than herself, and though he was human, the energy he exuded combined with his blatant, cool boredom honestly gave her the creeps.

"So this is the great Yusuke Urameshi," he spoke as he straightened and stepped toward them, into the light. "Funny. Somehow, I thought you'd be taller," he said more to himself than anyone else.

Yusuke bristled; just who the hell did this guy think he was? He set his jaw in a stubborn line and let his aura flare, though just slightly.

"Yeah, well who the hell wants to know?"

The stranger smirked. "Does it really matter?"

"Well," the detective drew out, as though he were thinking it over. "I usually like to know whose ass I'm kicking, but you don't really look all that important; so, why don't we just get this over with, huh?"

The stranger raised an eyebrow at the detective's cockiness, watching as Yusuke shed his coat and cracked his knuckles, apparently itching for a good fight. He caught the jewel shard from the air one last time and tucked it safely back into his pocket.

"Don't bother," Inuyasha growled, unable to keep his mouth shut any longer. "We'll be taking that with us."

The stranger smiled outright, putting them all further on edge. "Is that so?" He replied, not at all intimidated. "Well, all right, then. Since you all seem so eager, I suppose I could indulge you for a bit. Though four against one hardly seems fair. I think we should even up the odds, don't you agree?"

Kagome started as another figured seemed to drop from the night sky like a lightening strike. He was older, perhaps in his mid-twenties, but he was smaller than the rest of them, with the exception of Genkai. His inky black hair spilled down around his shoulders, and despite his stature and apparent lack of weapons, Kagome got the distinct impression that something sinister was lurking below the surface of his glacial skin.

"Feh," Inuyasha snorted. "You'll have to do better than this little guy if you want even things up with us, pal."

The diminutive soldier turned a scalding glare on them that made Kagome shudder outright. She'd never seen eyes like those on a human before, like burning pits of black fire, and hollow as the droning of a funeral drum. His every pore oozed unadulterated hate in tangible waves that nearly made her sick. He was the abyss that peered into the dark places of her soul. He was absolute night.

"I'd be careful, dog," the tall one advised. "You might make him angry."

"Like I give a shit," the hanyou grumbled, not letting his unease show, though Kagome knew differently. She wasn't the only one disturbed by the small human, it seemed. "Come on, short stuff. Let's see what you got."

And that was all it took. The heated rage that had been festering in his bones tore to the surface, splitting his skin and engulfing his body in a thick black armor of scales. Great bone spikes ripped through his flesh in a grotesque headdress that ran the length of his spine down to the tip of his gargantuan, ebony tail. His once human hands webbed, and he adorned razor sharp talons as he shifted into a monstrous, human-reptilian beast.

Kagome stepped back instinctively and drew her bow. Panicked screams echoed in the streets behind her from those previously unaware of their altercation, and she winced. _So much for being_ _discreet_, she thought.

"Looks like we just found our sea monster," Genkai said, while Yusuke whistled lowly. "Man, that's a hell of a parlor trick," he quipped, looking the creature over. "Bet you're a real hit at parties."

The creature seemed to grin then, allowing the soft glow of streets lights to illuminate the rows of serrated, spear length teeth.

"Stand back. This asshole is mine," Inuyasha proclaimed.

"No way, dog boy," Yusuke protested. "I'm taking the lizard!"

"Like hell!"

Whatever comment Yusuke might have made was cut off by a sharp whistle in his ear, followed by an intense stinging across his left cheek. He gasped, feeling the warmth of his blood trickle down his face, and his eyes narrowed on the tall human.

"Pay attention, detective," he snapped, arm extended with an open palm full of pebbles and his finger poised to strike again. "It's no fun for me if you don't even know what hit you."

"Yeah," Yusuke began, focusing his energy to the tip of his index finger. "I was just thinking the same thing."

* * *

Sango looked like she'd just swallowed a bug—he didn't really expect her to drink that…did he? It smelled like turpentine! "You know, that really isn't necessary, Kurama," she said, perhaps a bit too quickly. "I'm fine, really. Don't trouble yourself." 

"Nonsense," he replied, hiding his amusement as he poured the steaming, yellow broth into a cup that Sango was quite certain was much larger than need be. "It's no trouble at all."

"Here," he offered her the rather offensive smelling brew, and she hesitantly accepted, her lip curling just a bit when the odor hit her full force. "You'll need to drink it all," he told her. "It will ease the swelling and alleviate the discomfort you're feeling now."

The exterminator did not look convinced, and she eyed the pungent concoction suspiciously for several long moments, rolling the liquid around in its container as she mustered her nerve. Kirara, curious as to what all the fuss was about, crept up to her mistress' shoulder, stretching her neck to peer cautiously into the cup.

"It won't bite," Kurama chuckled.

The smell hit her quite suddenly then, and Kirara drew back with a decidedly sharp hiss, tripping over her own paws in the process and tumbling to the ground with all the grace of a drunken dog on roller skates. Frazzled and yowling a variety of feline expletives, she shot across camp in hasty retreat.

Sango blinked. "You sure?" She asked dryly.

Kurama grinned. "Promise. Now drink; it's not pleasant, but it is effective."

She sighed. _Here goes nothing_, she thought, holding her nose and choking down as much of the drink as she could before her gag reflex kicked in.

It didn't take long. Despite the slayer's monumental effort to keep her composure in tact, Sango hacked and sputtered and came dangerously close to emptying the contents of her stomach right there on the ground when the substance made its way up her nose. Kurama was quick to take her cup and replace it with water, which she hastily accepted.

"Are you all right?" He asked when she gained control of her breathing.

She nodded, still not quite able to speak, and he settled down beside her. "Here," he handed her a cold rag and pretended not to notice how she tensed at his proximity. "There is a spring, just through that grove of trees. I'll keep watch for you, if you want to clean up. This may be the last opportunity we will have for some time."

Sango stood swiftly; she was obviously uncomfortable with both his presence and his offer. "No, that won't be necessary," she said, rummaging through the pack for the toiletries Kagome had given her. "I'll be fine on my own."

A thick silence hung in the air, and Kurama regarded her coolly. "I would not look," he began somberly, "if that is your concern. It is unwise to go alone."

The deliberate edge to his words told Sango she had offended him, and though she regretted it, she made no effort to dispute what he knew she had been thinking and no intention of changing her mind.

"I'll have Kirara," she replied quietly without meeting his gaze.

Kurama gave a frustrated sigh, though her response did not surprise him. "Very well," he acquiesced, making a mental note to stay within hearing range. "Be careful." She nodded once, and the kitsune watched as she scooped the still pouting neko into her arms and melted into the night.

He stoked the fire and began picking up odds and ends left from their evening meal, though there was not that much to clean. It had just been the two of them. Not that Kurama had honestly expected the koorime to show up for dinner, anyway. Perhaps it was better that way, Kurama reflected, remembering the smoldering look of undisguised malice his companions had shared when held at the mercy of themselves in the grip of iron fist and blade. Perhaps, he thought somewhat uncomfortably, he had made a mistake in bringing her here.

Kurama shook his head roughly; he would simply have to make the best of things, no matter how unpleasant. The fox was never the type to dwell on what he could not change. Still…

"You're not making things any easier," he spoke into the trees, stooping to snatch another stick for the growing bundle in his arms. The kitsune had left camp to collect more firewood, which was very conveniently located along the edge of the grove. He had known all along he was being watched. "Like or not, she is as much a part of this mission as you or I. She deserves a chance."

"Hn," the demon grumbled as he dropped from his perch. "I owe her nothing."

"Of course," Kurama muttered to himself. "You could at least show some respect for her abilities. She did well today, and you know it." Hiei shot him a dark glare that would have dropped anyone else in their tracks. So, he'd hit a nerve had he? Good, it served him right. "You have no one to blame for what happened today other than yourself."

His scowl darkened further, if it was possible. "You know nothing of it, fox," Hiei snapped, at the limits of his patience with the kitsune.

"By all means, please, enlighten me," Kurama remarked. Hiei grunted something incomprehensible, and Kurama looked up just in time to catch the tiny projectile aimed right for his head. The fox blinked, rolling the dark gem over in his fingertips and studying it attentively. It suddenly occurred to him that it was more than just pure stubbornness that kept Hiei from moving when the slayer had warned him. He sighed heavily.

"You could have said something, Hiei," Kurama admonished half-heartedly. "We would have helped you."

"Hn. I didn't _need_ help," the fire apparition grumbled irritably. "Besides, I don't think I could've handled anymore _help_ from the two of you."

"Still…" Kurama trailed off, letting the silence fill the gap between them as he further examined the glittering fragment. The presence of the shard certainly explained a few things. Such as, what might possess a pack of low level jackal demons to attack them in the first place. They were notoriously stupid beasts, but they weren't suicidal.

Still, it nagged at him. It was unusual to find the more primitive youkai this close to the cities, and Kurama doubted that even a jewel shard would bring them this far from the heart of the grasslands. He sensed the tension in his companion and glanced over, knowing their thoughts were the same.

"A coincidence?" Kurama asked.

"Not likely," Hiei replied quietly.

The silence stretched between them once again, and Kurama took a moment to study the fire apparition, not entirely convinced he'd come out of the toxin completely unscathed. He was brooding, the fox noted, and though that wasn't really unusual, Kurama could tell that there was more to it this time. The kitsune sighed. Honestly, he was more childish than Yusuke and Kuwabara at times.

"She was worried about you, Hiei," Kurama supplied.

The diminutive youkai looked startled for just the fraction of a second before his carefully composed reticence slipped back into place. His face screwed up into its customary sneer and he turned away, arms crossed. "Hn. Then she's a bigger fool than I thought possible."

But the fox did not reply. Hiei turned back to find the kitsune staring intently into the surrounding woods. "Fox?"

"We are not alone."

* * *

_A/N: So, you all don't hate me too much…right? Well, if anyone out there is still speaking to me, I'd love to hear what you think about this, though I know I don't really deserve it. I really want to thank all of you that are sticking with this fic, you have no idea how much it means. Your support and reviews keep me going…even if it does take me forever to get there! _

**_Also, an extra-special big fat thank you to the very best beta a girl could possibly hope for…Gan Xingba, who, for those of you who don't know, has a wonderful IY/YYH crossover of his own called 'One for the Ages'. If you haven't read it then you should, because it's very well-written and more than worth the time. And I can promise you his updating schedule is much better than mine._**


	8. Chapter Eight

_A/N: Someone alert the press! It only took me a month this time. See, I'm getting better! I'll do what I can to update about once a month from now on._

_Peace, all. Read and enjoy! And don't forget to feed the author on your way out!_

**_Chapter Eight_**

Sango sighed as she sank down into the warmth of the spring, grateful for the opportunity to work the kinks out of her sore muscles and collect her thoughts in peace. It was seldom that she had the opportunity to bathe alone, and though Sango was glad for the quietude the situation allowed, she missed the companionship Kagome would have offered her. True, she had Kirara with her, who was arguably her best friend and the best listener she could possibly hope for, but Sango had come to realize that, often, it was just as important to have someone to talk rather than listen. It kept her occupied—kept her mind from wandering to the dark places she didn't like to touch.

Like right now.

She mulled those thoughts over, absently working the shampoo in her hair into a lather and gazing out into nothing. Kirara eyed the girl curiously, knowing instinctively what plagued the exterminator's thoughts. The neko flattened her ears and hung her head, unable to face her mistress as a silent tear slipped down her slender face and made ripples in the night. Kirara mewed quietly, and Sango forced a smile as she reached out to stroke her fur.

"It's okay, Kirara," she assured quietly and wiped away the evidence of her musings. "I know you tried."

Despite the melancholy nature of the moment, Sango was pleasantly surprised to find that it actually hadn't hurt to speak. _Well, that was certainly quick_, she thought. The slayer brought a tentative hand up to feel around the base of her neck, astonished when she found no swelling there.

"Wow," she began, turning her head from side to side. "Kurama's broth really did the trick."

Kirara trapped Sango in a decidedly critical stare, and the slayer looked away sheepishly, knowing automatically what the look was about. She dove under the surface of the water to rinse the soap from her hair and body, though it did not save her from the neko's scrutiny. How such a tiny animal could seem so intimidating was beyond her.

She sighed; her demon companion did have a point, though, whether Sango liked to admit it or not. Kurama had healed her twice, now—had done it with a smile, asking nothing of her in return, and she hadn't even so much as _considered_ thanking him. Unless one counted holding someone at knife point an appropriate gesture of gratitude. _Ugh_, she thought, embarrassed and disgusted with herself. _What is _wrong_ with me_?

Well, that wasn't really a valid question; Sango knew what was wrong with her. She was tired, she was angry, and deep down, in the most guarded places of her heart, she was scared. Still, it was no reason for her to lash out at Kurama. Demon or not, he had been kind to her, despite her blatant mistrust.

And insult.

Sango groaned, thinking of her encounter with the fox only a few moments ago. It wasn't that she really thought he was making a pass at her; Sango had known from the start that he was only looking out for her well-being. The exterminator simply had no idea how to deal with someone like Kurama, and it left her feeling awkward in her own skin. She was just so unsure of him—his very nature had her so on edge that she could just scream. True, he seemed gentle enough, but could she really trust him? A demon in human skin, he who belonged to neither world...

She stopped quite suddenly. Hadn't she been in a similar position, not so very long ago? _Honestly, Sango_, she berated, suddenly ashamed of herself. _Has Inuyasha taught you nothing? _

She exhaled and made her way to the edge of the spring. Kirara cocked her head to the side and followed her movements, her gaze unrelenting. "Okay Kirara," she conceded as she dressed. "I get it—really. I'll talk to him as soon as we get back."

* * *

His eyes glittered like broken jewels in the moonlight, and Kurama felt his body thrum with a heavy anticipation as the foreign energy closed in on them. Beside him, Hiei stood motionless as the dark of night, muscles taut and features etched of stone; his only indication of concern was the hand at rest on the hilt of his blade.

It was coming. Fast. In mere moments it would be upon them, and Kurama knew without having to be told, that this was nothing so simple as a pack of jackal youkai. He could feel it down to his bones, and his hand strayed, preparing to draw the rose whip as his eyes darted back and forth, anxiously.

"Honestly, Kurama," a voice began, causing Kurama's breath to hitch in recognition. "Is that any way to greet an old friend?"

Hiei snorted in irritation, and Kurama seemed a bit relieved, though only slightly. Deliberately, the fox relaxed his stance but remained ready to strike at any sign of hostility.

"I suppose that depends on the _friend_," he replied evenly.

Touya gave a dry chuckle, as he seemed to materialize before them. He crossed his arms and regarded them soberly. "Tell me, to what do we merit a visit from such _esteemed _agents of the spirit world?"

Hiei narrowed his eyes dangerously, annoyed with the ice master. "Our business is our own," he snapped.

Touya merely smirked, which only served to fuel the jaganshi's ire. Hiei growled and fingered the hilt of his katana, almost playfully, making entirely certain the demon understood his meaning.

"Well, there's no need for that," Touya stated, apparently not intimidated.

"What is it you really want, Touya?" Kurama interjected quickly before Hiei met the end of his virtually non-existent patience. "I find it difficult to believe the Shinobi spend the better part of their time patrolling a virtually uninhabited region of Makai without good reason."

"Ever the observant one, I see." The ice master met his piercing, emerald gaze, unwavering and decided that honesty was, indeed, the best approach. "We wished to see if the rumors about the Shikon jewel were true. I can see, now, that they are; your presence here confirms as much."

"Precisely what do you intend to do with such knowledge?" Kurama inquired after a long pause. He was not particularly looking forward to a fight with Touya. He'd done that once before, and once had been enough. The two had parted on favorable enough terms, but that certainly did not mean they were friends. Kurama respected Touya, and Touya respected him. However, if the ice demon was going to pose a threat to their effort…

The demon shrugged. "That really all depends on you, Kurama. We could leave now, begin our own hunt for the missing fragments like every other demon in Makai, asserting but a slim chance of victory and a certain confrontation with you at some point—"

"I fail to see the downside in that," Hiei grumbled, earning himself a sharp glare from the ice master.

"—Or you could accept my offer, now, to the benefit of us all."

"We?" Kurama queried, causing Touya to spare him a confused glance. "You said we. I'd like to know who else we're dealing with."

A particularly foul sounding commotion from the thick of distant foliage cut off whatever response Touya would have made, and as though on cue, the wind master, Jin, emerged from the brush. In one arm, he carried a short sword and a variety of other blades that Kurama recognized immediately, as well as a seemingly unconscious neko grasped firmly by the scruff of her neck. In the other, hefted over his shoulder like a sack of grain, was Sango, kicking and spitting and swearing for all she was worth.

"…Put me down, you inarticulate oaf! Now! Do you hear me?" She shouted as she thrashed, pounding her fists against his back. Sango was absolutely livid. Never had she been so grossly disregarded by an opponent, and the insult to her pride was staggering. "You unbelievable bastard! So help me, I'll beat you to death with your own arms if you don't put me down this instant!"

Jin, of course, was entirely oblivious to the ever-more colorful threats and curses she spat at him, a not-so subtle testament to the fact that the slayer had been traveling with Inuyasha for far too long. A goofy grin split the demon's features, and his cerulean eyes danced with mirth as he made his way over to his comrade with a bounce in his step.

"Will ya have a look at this," he began cheerfully, his ears wiggling excitedly. "Found her lurkin' out there in the bushes, I did."

"I wondered where you'd gone," Touya murmured to himself, sizing up his teammate. Busted lip…black eye…bloody nose…various knife wounds…Touya hadn't seen Jin look this happy since the Dark Tournament.

The demon rattled on eagerly as the ice master circled around to come face to face with the scowling demon slayer. She took a poorly executed swing at him, and he stepped away, dismissively. He didn't bother to hide his surprise when he took in her features.

"A human?" Touya asked rhetorically, quirking a brow at Kurama.

"Aye, lad, and a damned feisty one at that!" Jin informed him, jovially, having never stopped talking. "Took me ten whole minutes just to get these," he continued, holding up her companion and blades like a trophy. "Had no idea a human girl could kick up such a stink. Do ya reckon I could keep her?" He asked innocently.

Sango flushed; she hadn't been able to understand a word he'd said until just then, and her eyes widened in horror. "Keep me!" She sputtered angrily. "I'm not some stray animal you big horse's ass!" Sango renewed her efforts at escape, twice as fervently as before.

"Well, ya don't have to get all fussy about it, lass." He grinned, not at all offended. "We could have a right good time together, you and me."

"The young lady is traveling with us," Kurama announced, drawing the wind master's attention for the first time—he had honestly forgotten they were there.

Jin spun toward Kurama, which brought Sango face to face with Hiei. The fire apparition wore a highly satisfied smirk, telling Sango just how much he was enjoying her humiliation, and she scowled. _Little bastard_, she thought irritably.

"_How_ did the two o' _you_ manage to dig up girl, and _then_ get her to come with ya?" Jin asked with a chuckle, apparently disbelieving.

"It's a long story." Kurama sighed heavily, running a hand through the top of his long, red hair.

"Which," Touya interjected, "I'm sure we'll hear later. Once we begin traveling, perhaps."

Hiei's expression darkened then, and Kurama raised an eyebrow in question. "You intend to join us, then?" The fox inquired.

The ice master smirked. "You need us."

Hiei snorted disdainfully. "The position of token idiot has been filled, we don't _need _the company of two more."

"Are you so sure, Forbidden One?" Touya asked sharply, ignoring his barb. "Tell me, are you leading them to the Akuma territory? What do you plan to do once you get there? Waltz right in to the demon city? How easy do you think that will be for two demon traitors and human girl?"

Hiei sent the demon a hard glare but did not respond. No matter how much he loathed to admit it, Touya did have a point.

"My offer is simple," he continued, redirecting his attention to Kurama. "We will give you our assistance, however you deem it necessary, for a minimal fee to the Spirit World."

"What is it you want?" Kurama asked, incredulously.

He paused, choosing his words carefully. "Just a place to call home."

Kurama knew there was more to it than that but did not press the matter. He brought a hand to rest on his chin, a gesture he often made when in deep thought. After a moment of mulling it over in his mind he spoke.

"You understand, we cannot make promises on behalf of the Spirit World. The matter of your compensation rests between Koenma and yourself." Kurama paused. "However, should you merit such, and your price prove reasonable…I will use what little influence I have in your favor."

"_Is that wise, fox?"_ Hiei asked in his mind.

"_Probably not." _

"Do we have an agreement?" Kurama extended his hand, expectantly.

"On my honor as Shinobi," Touya replied, shaking his hand to seal the deal.

"Good," Kurama said, smiling pleasantly. "Now, could we have our friends back?"

* * *

They dove in different directions, scrambling for cover as a hailstorm of tiny, stone projectiles ripped through the night with enough force to shatter the pallet of crates they had been standing in front of.

Inuyasha skidded to a stop, gaping openly as he set Kagome back on her feet. Yusuke stepped out from behind his warehouse refuge, and Genkai emerged from the cover of shadow—all of them wide eyed and wondering the same thing. _Just what the hell was that? _

However, no time was afforded them to ponder the subject further. Without warning, Sniper unleashed another brutal assault, this one accompanied by the powerful attack of his reptilian accomplice. The creature screamed with a vengeance as he drove his giant fists into the earth on either side of the hanyou and lunged toward them with death in his eyes.

"Damn it!" Inuyasha cursed as he was forced to hit the ground running, Kagome clinging to his back with her eyes clenched tightly. "You assholes are askin' for it!"

He ducked and dodged, jumping from left to right as he ran, desperately trying to avoid the monstrous lizard-man swinging violently at his heels. To his left, he could see Yusuke at a flat run, swearing with each stride as the asphalt sparked with stones that ricocheted at his feet. "Shit, shit, shit…"

Genkai rolled and twisted, somersaulting with preternatural grace and agility uncommon for her age. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously as the tall human fired once again. She _knew_ this energy. His bizarre ability to change otherwise mundane objects into lethal weaponry only confirmed what she had suspected from the beginning.

"He's a psychic," she announced loudly as she pushed forward to where Yusuke and Inuyasha were doing their best to stay ahead of their respective pursuers.

"A what?" Yusuke called, unable to hear for the cracking of rocks.

"A psychic," she repeated with emphasis. "We're inside his territory—"

"His what?" Yusuke shouted.

"_Territory_!" She exclaimed, growing frustrated. "That energy you feel is his territory. Anything inside it is susceptible to his power; in this case, he can turn inanimate objects into ammunition!"

"Yeah, I'm starting to get that!"

"So, what's the point, old woman?" Inuyasha interrupted, a bit rudely. Not that he had time for pleasantries with a twenty-foot lizard on his ass. For whatever reason, the beast was entirely intent on taking he and Kagome down, and despite his best efforts, Inuyasha just couldn't seem to shake him for more than a moment or two.

"The point, dimwit, is that his territory—" She dropped to the ground and rolled away then sprung back to her feet as though it were nothing. "—will stand so long as he's conscious."

"So, as long as he's up," Yusuke began, getting slightly winded, "we're target practice?"

"Even if he's not aiming at us?" Kagome inquired, hoping she was wrong.

"Basically…yes!"

Sniper paused in his assault and laughed heartily. Perhaps they were worth his time, after all. Maybe it was time to get a bit more…_creative_.

"You're good, I'll give you that. But not nearly good enough." From the remains of destroyed cargo, Sniper found the source of his next attack, and he grinned devilishly. This was going to be entirely too much fun.

"I wouldn't laugh, asshole," Yusuke warned arrogantly. "You'll just make yourself look stupid when I kick your…Gah!" His eyes widened drastically, and he was forced to dive again when a bowling ball burned a path through the air, aimed straight for his head.

"Damn it, this shit's getting old!" He yelled. They had to knock at least one of these guys out of commission now, and he knew it. Without hesitation, he made a break for it, running directly at Inuyasha and Kagome, crates exploding in his wake from the barrage of bowling equipment hurtling his way.

Inuyasha's eyes doubled in size. That idiot was heading straight for them! He veered left, and Yusuke did the same. "Fool! Get outta the damn way!" Inuyasha shouted.

But Yusuke didn't listen. Instead, he plowed right into them, knocking all three of them back so abruptly and with such strength that the reptile springing at them, overshot his goal and missed them altogether. He howled out in pain and rage when Sniper's assault intended for the detective pummeled his flesh and sent him sprawling painfully across the concrete.

For a moment, all was still.

"Idiot!" Inuyasha spat as he picked himself up from the ground. "You nearly killed us!"

"You're welcome," Yusuke commented dryly_. So much for gratitude._

"Not now you two," Kagome reprimanded. Abruptly, she made a break for the nearest building to offer suitable cover. Yusuke and Inuyasha exchanged a quick glance before following suit. They just managed to turn the corner when Genkai dropped in their midst, looking a bit winded, just as the rest of them.

Once again, their surroundings grew eerily still. After a few moments, they could hear Sniper's easy footsteps as he strolled about the lot toward his accomplice, seemingly without care.

"You don't really think that's going to help you, do you?" He spoke amusedly as he prodded Doki with the toe of his sneaker. "I don't have to see you to hit you. It just makes it more fun for me."

Inuyasha clenched his fists as the arrogant human continued to goad them. "We gotta do something besides just run around out there," he whispered harshly.

"We can't hurt them, Inuyasha," Kagome said softly. "They're human."

"Well, we can't just roll over and die, either, Kagome!" He exclaimed, still in hushed tones. "And besides, you can't tell me that lizard's a human!"

"Well, he is," she said stiffly. "I don't know what has happened to him, but he's definitely human. I can feel it."

The look on her face was so serious that Inuyasha almost found himself relenting. Almost. "Whatever," he grumbled. "It's not like we gotta kill 'em, anyway. Just knock 'em out. Right?"

"That's the idea," Genkai said. "If we can take out the psychic, then the other should be no problem; he's not much good right now, anyway." She commented, peeking out to make certain the creature was still immobile.

"Easier said than done, Grandma. How are we supposed to take him down when we can't even get close to him?"

"Leave that to me," she said. "You all just keep him busy, and I'll handle the rest."

Inuyasha sighed. "All right, but you better know what the hell you're doing, old woman," he grumbled, turning to face the priestess. "You just stay back, Kagome. We'll handle this."

He took off before she could respond, and Kagome snorted in frustration as the others followed suit. _Ooh, that boy!_

They hadn't fully rounded the corner when they were accosted head on by another wave of killer bowling balls. Inuyasha ducked and swore as he brought Tetsusaiga to the ready, hoping to stem at least some of the assault. From the corner of his eye he could see Yusuke drawing power into his index finger, and they nodded to each other in understanding.

Suddenly, both darted in opposite directions, bobbing and weaving as they took down as many of the projectiles as possible with their respective weapons. Yusuke fired repeatedly, alternating between his shotgun and single rounds. Inuyasha sliced with deadly precision, and for the moment, they were handling the situation quite well.

However, Sniper only seemed to grow more amused with the circumstances. _More__creative, indeed_, he thought. Without warning, he compounded his efforts, bringing in more and more cargo until he was at the brink of his capability to control the situation.

Inuyasha's eyes widened. If Sniper was hoping to confuse them it was definitely working. He had more objects flying than not at this point—everything from light bulbs to hammers to robotic pets were coming at him from all different angles, and the hanyou was getting entirely frustrated with all the bizarre contraptions whizzing in his direction. He cursed and hacked and dodged, doing his best to keep up, but things were beginning to look grim.

Within moments, Inuyasha found himself in the center of a cyclone, surrounded completely by debris on all sides, and he had no choice but to stop running altogether and rely on his sword and claws alone. Across the lot he could hear the detective cursing and knew he was in the same predicament. Even Genkai, who had managed to make it within yards of the gunman on sheer stealth and agility alone, had been unable to escape the assault; she made do, continually moving and sending warm ki blasts from her palms to obliterate what obstacles she could.

"Did you really think it would be so easy?" Sniper sighed, disappointed. He'd had his fun, but it was time to put an end to this; he was getting bored. He pulled the pistol from the inside of his jacket and took aim at the detective, ready to make his point in one clean, precise shot.

He stumbled back in shock when a brilliant beam of light shot by him and knocked the weapon forcefully from his grip. _Damn it_, he thought, _the priestess_. How could he have forgotten?

"Damn it, Kagome!" Inuyasha reprimanded. "I told you to stay back!"

"You can thank me later," she called, stringing another arrow. Of course she hadn't really thought beyond what she would do now, but she certainly wasn't going to back down. He could throw whatever he wanted at her.

But he didn't.

Kagome felt the heat on her back and suddenly understood why.

She scrambled away just before the reptile's monstrous fist collided with the pavement, causing it to crack and shatter in violent ripples and shaking the earth below their feet. Kagome picked herself up off the ground and swallowed hard; she'd just been standing there.

Kagome felt nauseous, knowing that he had been deliberately aiming for her. She heard a guttural snarl to her right, and she turned her head slowly, eyes widening in horror. Apparently, he still was.

The beast took a vicious swing at her, and she staggered backward, only just missing the tips of his razor sharp claws. He came at her again, even faster than before, and again the priestess barely managed to avoid a painful death as she dove out of the way quickly.

The monster was swifter than she had anticipated, though, and he was on her before she could rise and put space enough to knock her bow between them. She screamed as he grabbed her extended leg and yanked her back roughly, his talons raking bloody furrows down the length of her calf.

"Kagome!" Inuyasha cried, fighting through the barrage of robotic animals and other such nonsense swarming him, desperately trying to reach the priestess before Doki could devour her.

Sniper let the demon go. He had no real interest in the dog, anyway.

"Oh, no you don't, asshole!" Inuyasha shouted as he brought the Tetsusaiga down to slice into the flesh of the monster's left arm, using only enough strength to make his point without severing the limb completely. Doki shrieked at the contact and swung the other colossal fist blindly, giving Kagome the split second she needed to escape, and catching Inuyasha squarely in the gut. The half demon grunted as the blow sent him skidding painfully across the pavement and straight through the wall of a nearby warehouse.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome cried as the unstable building shook violently with the force of it and caved in. "No!"

But the beast paid him no mind. He stalked toward the hobbling priestess with a deadly gleam in his eye, oblivious to the blood that oozed grotesquely from his wounds in thick black rivulets and pooled like tar at his feet. He watched blankly as she stumbled to the edge of the lot, where the pier met the sea in a steep slope of rocks, and stopped, straightening her spine as she turned to him. Her attempts at escape were pointless; she had nowhere left to go, now, and they both knew it.

Kagome wasn't stupid. She knew what he wanted, knew why he'd singled her out from the beginning. And now she faced him down, knocking her bow with unsteady fingers, as he advanced on her for the last time. Human or not, there was just too much at stake this time, and she'd kill him if she had to.

She'd be damned if she let him have it.

With a great bellow of rage the beast descended, razor sharp talons poised to slice through her soft flesh as though it were butter. She trembled visibly, and took aim.

"Forgive me," she whispered.

Doki lunged.

Kagome fired.

She cried out in surprise when she felt an arm grip her tightly around the waist, abruptly pulling her from harm's way, and completely disrupting the trajectory of her shot.

The sacred arrow lit the night brightly and whistled loudly in his ear as it just missed its intended target, and Doki snarled in frustration. The detective had just run off with his quarry.

"You all right?" Yusuke asked without stopping. He was aware that the reptile was already in hot pursuit.

"Yeah," came her breathless reply. "Thanks."

"We gotta do something about these guys," he began, darting to the right to narrowly avoid the reptile's steely grasp. "Now. We can't keep this up, and grandma can only hold ol' trigger back for so long."

Unfortunately, 'so long' had apparently come. Kagome gasped, and Yusuke snapped his attention in the direction of hers to see his mentor hit the ground hard.

"Genkai!" He hesitated, then, and that was all it took.

Genkai lifted her head from the asphalt weakly, just in time to watch as the reptile swung his mighty fist down, forcing Yusuke to jump back in the air to avoid the blow—only to be struck full-force by the broadside of a fold-out couch as it emerged from the rubble of the building Inuyasha took down. Sniper smirked in victory as he sent the two sailing through the night and out into the unforgiving waters below.

The reptile reversed his transformation and glared hatefully at his companion as he strode across the lot to peer down into the water. For a moment, the two exchanged a tense silence. Finally, Sniper waved his hand dismissively. "Next time, Doki. Next time."

The dark one did not look satisfied, but the tall human honestly did not seem to care. He turned his attention to Genkai, smirking bitterly as she struggled to her hands and knees.

"Don't tell me you're going to give this another go?" He mocked.

She looked up at him with narrowed eyes and spit the blood from her mouth. "You have amazing control of your power," she rasped, getting straight to the point. "Tell me, boy; how did you manage to master it so fully in only 48 hours?"

Sniper stopped still, gazing at her with a strange look in his eyes. He smiled openly, then, amused with her subtle accusation. "Well, well…you certainly _are_ a sharp one," he confirmed, though he gave nothing else away. "If he lives, tell the detective I expect a real fight next time."

He nodded to his companion, who was only too happy to carry out the unspoken request. With a cruel smirk, Doki hauled back and kicked the injured psychic forcefully in the ribs; she rolled across the pavement and tumbled end over end down the slope of jagged rocks before coming to a rest, face down and unmoving, in the wet sand.

* * *

Botan cast a worried glance to the orange-haired youth trudging dutifully behind her and frowned. His brown eyes were glassy, his shoulders slumped, and he still seemed a bit too pale, in her opinion.

"We can stop and rest awhile, if you need, Kuwabara," she said aside to him, quietly.

His attention snapped toward her then, surprised at the break in their companionable silence. "Hey, don't worry about me," he said as he stood a little straighter and forced a smile. "I could go on like this for days!"

Botan knew better but understood his persistence. The first two days had been slow going as their transition into Reikai had taken more adjustment than she had counted on. _Much _more. Upon entering the Spirit Realm, Kuwabara had practically gone into sensory overload, something she had not anticipated considering this wasn't his first visit to Reikai. However, he had never gone beyond the protection of the Gateway of Decision, and his spirit awareness had simply been overwhelmed by what lay beyond it.

And as such, Kuwabara suffered. Immensely. Searing pain, the likes of which he'd never known, burned through his veins and ate away at his brain. His body convulsed, and he writhed in agony as he emptied his stomach until nothing remained, bleeding from the eyes and screaming unintelligibly through the stench of his own vomit and sweat.

Even as the violent physical reaction of his body subsided, his mind remained muddled, and he could not distinguish one spiritual energy from another as of yet—there were just too many.

He wasn't alone in his struggles, it seemed. Botan let her eyes drift to the holy man in their presence. While Miroku was not nearly as affected as Kuwabara had been, Botan could still see the heavy cloud of burden descend to his eyes; she did not miss the way he struggled over simple words and actions, either—he was obviously trying to dismiss the pain.

Shippou, thankfully, remained fairly unaffected, and Botan was grateful that Kurama had suggested she take a demon; she honestly did not know if she could handle Kuwabara and Miroku on her own. His body was naturally more adept to handle the onslaught of spiritual entities than that of a human, and if he would be affected at all, it would have to come from an immense force or a rather lengthy period of time here. At least, she hoped this would be the case.

Regardless, Botan was glad for his presence. He kept a level head during Kuwabara's adjustment, something she had been unable to do. He had been a bit more prepared for the possibility of a rough transition than she, and if it hadn't been for him, Botan would have likely yanked them right back out of Reikai and into Ningenkai—which they could not afford to do when their time was already so limited. Thus, between Kuwabara's vehement protest of the notion and Shippou's reassurances that they would, in fact, recover soon, she had relented…at least for the time being.

She still didn't like the idea of Kuwabara pushing so hard, though. She knew he didn't want to hold them up anymore, but she couldn't have him killing himself, either. "Are you sure?" She asked incredulously. "You're looking awfully tired."

He puffed his chest out slightly, then and let his ego do the talking. "Are you kidding? I'm the great Kazuma Kuwabara! I'll have these stupid shards found and we'll be outta here in no time." He began to dance a bit on the balls of his feet then, throwing a few quick jabs into the air for good measure. "Just show me to 'em! I could take on anything Spirit World has to offer right now!"

Botan opened her mouth to protest but did not get the opportunity. "Yes, well, you may not need rest, but I for one, could use some," Shippou interjected, earning himself an appreciative look from the grim reaper.

"Yes, I agree," Miroku said as he sidled up next to Shippou and Botan. "It may be quite some time before we get the opportunity again.

"Well, I guess if you guys need to stop we might as well," Kuwabara replied, his previous argument forgotten all too quickly. He flung his pack in the dirt and settled at the base of a tall tree. In a matter of seconds, he was snoring.

Botan sighed, exasperated. _Honestly, that boy…_

"So, what's the plan?" Shippou asked quietly and peered over at Kuwabara from the corner of his eye. "It's going to be at least a full day before his spirit awareness fully adjusts. We can't afford to just sit here that long."

"No, I suppose you're right," Miroku said, eyes pensive and thoughtful. "How much further to the outer banks?"

"Not much," Botan responded. "At this rate…an hour. Maybe two."

"That's certainly not enough time for a full recovery," Miroku said grimly. "We've got no choice really. We'll have to proceed down the river and just hope that his awareness returns b-before we, uh…before we get too far."

Botan frowned and reached up to brush the hair from his eyes. "Are you all right?"

He beamed at her, though his vision remained a bit unfocused. "I appreciate your concern, my lady. I am fine—really."

Botan felt the blood rush to her face—his condition had apparently affected his better judgment. At least, that's what he would later claim. "Hands to yourself, monk," she growled as she smacked his hand, none too gently, and swiftly moved away. If she had known what kind of a beating the monk could actually take, she would have slapped him into next week.

Shippou cleared his throat politely. "Right, then," he began, anxious to get back on task. "About the river, I'd like to know a bit more about what to expect before we head in. Perhaps we should map out our course and point of entry."

"Well, we won't actually be traveling down the river, more like across. You see, the full body of the river Styx actually wraps around Spirit World nine times."

The grim reaper dropped to her knees in the dirt, then, using the nearest stick to draw out her diagram. After several long moments, she paused in her effort, looking over the picture carefully before adding the final touches. She smiled, satisfied with herself, as she motioned for the others to join her.

"Like this," she gestured to a long, elliptical spiral. "Right now, we're here, on the outermost circuit, and just inside the Gateway of Decision."

"I always thought Styx ended at the Gateway," Shippou said.

"No, that's a common misconception; most of the river actually lies beyond it. The journey of a soul is a very long process, indeed. After judgment is passed, the soul is returned to the river to be transported to its appropriate territory. Each circuit the river makes separates one territory from the next, the outer regions being the safest of these and working steadily into darker realms. Within each realm, there is a guardian who ensures the passage and containment of souls into their territory. Charon, is the strongest and wisest of them all; unlike the others, his job is not only to ensure the deliverance of souls to his own realm, but to secure passage for the malevolent down Acheron, the river of woe, into the bowels of Reikai. His territory is here," she pointed, "at the innermost point of limbo, where Styx and Acheron meet."

"And to get there could take months by waterway alone," Miroku ventured.

"Maybe longer," Botan replied.

"We should consider the possibility that he's not even there," Shippou chimed in. "If he doesn't want to be found, chances are that he's not hanging around his post."

"No, but he won't stray far from the river, either," Botan said, confidently. "He draws his power from it; in turn, his life-force is bound to it. He's as much a part of Styx as Styx is of him."

"Still, it's a _big_ river," Miroku said. "He could be anywhere."

"Not if he wants to remain unnoticed," Shippou remarked thoughtfully. "I'd imagine it would be easier to hide in the deeper territories."

"Yes, that makes sense," Botan agreed.

"All right," Shippou said, studying their makeshift map a moment. "We can head straight into limbo from here," he pointed out, "and then sweep the other side on the way out. With a little luck, we'll find Charon and maybe dig up a few other shards along the way. What do you guys think?"

Botan nodded, and Miroku shrugged.

"Sounds like a plan."

* * *

_A/N: I've decided to go with the heavy Irish dialect portrayed in the dub for Jin. Personally, I think it adds something lively and a bit more fun to this particular group, so it seemed appropriate. _

_Also, I've had several questions regarding pairings. Yes, this will definitely be a San/Hiei pairing…this will NOT change. By the same token, this will not be a Kag/Kur. Sorry, folks. Nothing personal, I'm just a little tired of seeing them. I had planned on making this Kag/Yus. However, the majority of my reviewers seem to be supporting Kag/Inu, so I'm wavering just a bit on this. Probably still Kag/Yus, but it really just depends on where the story takes me in the end._

_**Many thanks to my wonderful beta, Gan Xingba! Whose story you should all go read… right now…you know you want to.**_


	9. Chapter Nine

_A/N: Well, here it is. I know you guys have been more than patient with me, and to show my appreciation, I present you with…dare I say it…fluff. Among other things. Hope you all enjoy!_

_Oh, and please feed the author!_

_**Chapter Nine**_

Inuyasha groaned. His head felt like a squashed bug, and for some reason that escaped him now, he couldn't move. His golden eyes fluttered open slowly, only to reveal total darkness. _Great_. _Where the hell am I?_

He shifted uncomfortably, blinking the dust from his eyes and taking a moment to process his situation. The last thing he remembered he was dodging all those strange, mechanical creatures…and then, he'd heard a scream…

"Kagome!" Inuyasha gasped as the moment returned to him fully. With a sudden burst of adrenaline, the hanyou broke through his confines and sat straight up. He immediately wished he hadn't done that when a wave of nausea hit him full force, causing his vision to swim. He shook his head roughly in an attempt to clear his head and began to pull himself free of the rubble that had held him captive. After several moments and some degree of difficulty, the hanyou staggered to his feet, sheathing his blade once he'd gained his balance.

"Kagome!" He called, scanning his surroundings for the girl he'd sworn to protect. "Kagome!"

"Well, what do we have here?"

Inuyasha spun at the unfamiliar voice to come face to face with his audience. He was a large man, almost jolly looking, in a strange blue uniform that Inuyasha did not recognize. His gaze drifted over the half demon and settled at his side.

Inuyasha tensed. _Uh oh…_

The man shouted out with laughter, startling the hanyou. "Hey Nori," he called. "Get a load of this guy! He thinks he's some kind of samurai!"

"What!" Inuyasha fumed as the second man approached. If anything, they should be intimidated by Tetsusaiga, not amused. "Listen here, pal—"

"Now take it easy," the second man, who Inuyasha could only assume was this _Nori_ character, placated. "Let's not get upset. My partner here is just a bit taken aback by your…uh…sword there. We'd like to ask you a few questions; why don't you come with us?"

"Feh," Inuyasha snorted rather rudely. "I ain't got time for a bunch a stupid questions." He turned to sprint away, then, intent on getting back to Kagome and the others. However, a heavy hand dropped on his shoulder stopped him dead in his tracks.

"What!" Inuyasha snapped impatiently.

"I'm trying to make this easy on you," the second man said, his tone laced with annoyance. "Let's not add resisting arrest to the list of charges against you, all right."

Inuyasha was dumbfounded. What the hell was this idiot talking about? "Back off, asshole," the hanyou growled. "I didn't do nothing."

"And I'm the pope," the first officer remarked. He was holding out a pair of odd, metal shackles, and Inuyasha's eyes widened in surprise. They weren't going to put those on him, were they?

"You're smack in the middle of a crime scene, kid. Carrying a deadly weapon, no less—what are we supposed to think here?" Nori asked rhetorically.

"I don't really give a shit what you think," Inuyasha snarled. He was getting angry now; the fat one kept easing toward him with those restraints, and the tall one wouldn't let go of his shoulder. _Stupid humans_, he thought. It was time to get rid of these idiots and get back down to business.

He jerked away, quickly, but before he could get a good running start, Nori swept his legs out from under him, sending the half demon crashing to the ground. They both tackled him, then, the fat one doing his best to secure handcuffs to Inuyasha's continually moving wrists.

"Would you two dumb fucks get off me!" Inuyasha yelled. This was beginning to get ridiculous. Someone's foot was pushing against his face, and he had someone else in a headlock, though, at the moment, he couldn't see whom. All in all, they were a writhing, struggling dog-pile of fists and invectives.

"Not…until…you…come with us…peacefully."

Inuyasha narrowed his eyes; apparently, they just weren't going to give up on this. He sighed. He hadn't wanted to hurt them, but it looked like he wasn't going to have much of a choice. Without warning, he released his grip on the fat one's head and flung him into a stack of nearby broken crates.

"Holy shit," Nori said, his eyes bulging in surprise. His partner easily weighed 250 pounds…that shouldn't have been that easy. He froze as the hanyou grabbed him by the collar of his uniform and suspended him from the ground.

"Now," Inuyasha began, his tone venomous. "Are you gonna let me get outta here, or am I gonna have to get rough?" The officer shook his head vigorously, and Inuyasha smirked. "That's what I thought," the hanyou said triumphantly and set the man on his feet.

Thinking he'd won, the half demon turned to make his exit. However, Nori refused to give up so easily, and as he made to leave, the officer launched himself onto Inuyasha's back, hanging on for dear life as the half demon cursed and jerked, trying to dislodge the persistent police officer.

"Osamu!" He cried, wondering if this had been a wise decision. "Osamu, get up!"

The fat one sat up slowly and groaned. He blinked his vision back into place and then gasped at what he saw. "What the…what should I do?"

"What do you mean 'what should I do'?" His partner shouted, still hanging on as Inuyasha began to spin violently. "Call for backup, dumbass!"

"R-right! Backup, right," he replied as he fumbled with his radio.

Inuyasha, meanwhile, was thoroughly pissed off, and he decided that no matter what the outcome with the jewel, he had to find some way home. The demons he could deal with, but the people in this time were just plain crazy.

"All right, Nori! They're coming," the fat one called. "Just hang on!"

And they did, too. In a matter of seconds, ten more men in strange blue suits spilled into the area. They were all shouting and drawing weapons, and Inuyasha was growing increasingly annoyed with the situation. He had his hands full trying to peel the one leaching off his back as it was. The little shit was stuck on like ugly on a wild boar's ass! Every time the hanyou would almost shake him, the bastard would find some other way to cling to him. With this new threat, Inuyasha did not have the time to mess around, anymore.

"Fine, punk," the hanyou snapped. "You asked for it!" He threw himself back against the concrete wall of a nearby building, and though he'd really only used a fraction of his strength, he effectively squashed the officer attached to his back. Once…twice…three times, before he felt the man's grip slacken. Damn, but he was persistent!

"Ugh," the officer groaned, though he still hadn't dropped to the ground. "I think I'm going to be sick."

Inuyasha froze. "You bastard—you better not!"

It was all the opportunity they needed. Before he could blink, the newcomers swarmed him. Inuyasha swore colorfully—they were everywhere! He had one on each arm and leg, and Gods only knew how many on his back. They were cursing and throwing as many punches as he was, yet, he refused to go down. He dragged himself, and them, toward the ledge, hoping to pitch at least a couple of them into the water. Maybe then, he could gain some leverage and make a break for it.

Apparently, it wasn't going to work that way. Inuyasha cried out as he felt the one on his left leg bite down—hard.

"You son of a bitch!" He yelled, shaking his leg as violently as possible, though the effort was thwarted with the extra weight of so many clinging to his form. This really was getting ridiculous, now, he thought. Everyone within a mile must have been tagging along for the ride!

However, he was wrong. The fat one had smartly chosen to stand back until the most opportune moment. And given the current distraction, he couldn't help but think that moment was right now.

And so, Osamu took his chance. When the hanyou stopped, he darted toward them and cracked Inuyasha sharply over the head with his nightstick. To his utter horror, the half demon did not so much as flinch, but his nightstick—well, that was another story. Osamu's eyes doubled in size when the virtually indestructible material promptly broke in half and fell clattering to the pavement.

Inuyasha turned his head to face him ever so slowly, his golden eyes gleaming with barely contained rage. "That's it!" The hanyou exploded, charging the offending party with a new surge of strength.

Osamu went pale and scuttled backward clumsily as Inuyasha took a swing at him, completely ignoring the unwelcome passengers on his back and limbs.

_Gods, I knew that__was a mistake_! The officer thought frantically.

The hanyou swung again, and Osamu pilfered around in his pockets hurriedly, desperately searching for his one last resort. Finally, he freed the small, black tube from his shirt, tripping over his own feet in his panic and landing squarely on his ass.

Inuyasha advanced, entirely ready to knock the living daylights out of his aggressor, only to be sprayed full force in the face by what felt like liquid fire. The half demon howled in agony and dropped to the ground as though he were struck by lightning, bringing everyone down with him in a clumsy, swearing heap. He coughed and gagged as he fought to bring air into his lungs, blinded and rendered virtually helpless by the susceptibility of his own senses.

Osamu sat back wide-eyed and breathing hard, complete surprise written in his features, though mostly he was just glad to be alive. Slowly, the others were picking themselves off the ground, equally stunned at the writhing hanyou on the asphalt. For a moment, no one said a word.

Finally, the officer who'd bitten found his voice. "Gods!" He shouted. "You mean after all of that, he goes down with one puny, little squirt of government issued pepper spray!" He threw his arms up, frustrated and mumbling to himself as he stomped over to snatch his hat from the ground.

The others groaned; no one was certain if it was good fortune or dumb luck. "All right, boys," Nori breathed from his spot on the ground. "Let's load him up."

* * *

Her lungs were screaming for air by the time she finally resurfaced, and Kagome choked and sputtered as she desperately fought to keep her head above the waves. Every stroke she made was agony as the saltwater bit into her open wounds, and her muscles were beginning to quake with exertion as she dragged the unconscious detective by the collar of his shirt. _Come on, _she thought. _ Just a little further Kagome…don't quit now…just a little bit further…_

The waves surged, and once again Kagome found herself struggling to break the surface. It was getting harder every time, but still she pressed on with determination. No way was she going to let either of them die out there, especially not when Yusuke had gone to all the trouble of saving her life. He wouldn't even be out here right now if it wasn't for her.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Kagome felt her feet skim across solid ground, and the priestess nearly laughed out loud. She doubled her efforts, struggling to gain steady footing in the sand. She turned to grab Yusuke under the arms when she was halfway out of the water, and with renewed strength, dragged the detective up onto the bank, his feet still drifting in the sea.

Kagome collapsed there beside him in the wet sand, panting heavily from her efforts as she pushed the sopping mass of raven hair from her eyes and focused her vision. It was then that she got her first real look at Yusuke's face, and the priestess gasped in shock. The detective looked as though he'd lost a fight with a Mack truck; his whole face was bruised and swollen, he was sporting a nasty gash above his right eye, and Kagome thought he might have had a broken nose, though she couldn't say for certain with all of the swelling.

"Yusuke? Yusuke, wake up." Her voice was raw and broken, and she shook him gently. It occurred to her, then, just how pale he looked. In fact, his lips were almost blue. She stopped quite suddenly. "Oh, Gods…"

He wasn't breathing.

Her natural reaction was, at first, to panic, and it took all the control she had to choke back her fears and let reason take over long enough to administer CPR. She tilted his head back, giving a silent apology when she pinched his nose shut in the event that it was broken, and pressed her lips to his, hoping to breathe life into his chest.

Alternating between pumping his chest rhythmically and breathing air into his lungs, her actions were steady and solid. However, her thoughts weren't nearly as confident, and Kagome began to feel a cold dread settle in the pit of her stomach. After nearly a full minute, it seemed that she was getting nowhere.

_Come on, Yusuke…come on!_ _Please don't die… please don't die…_ she thought, her motions getting more and more frantic with each passing second. _Damn it, Yusuke! _ _Don't you die on me!_ Finally, at the brink of her sanity, she brought her fist crashing down upon his chest in rage and frustration.

And that's when she heard it—a labored gurgling sound in his throat. She still had a chance! "That's it, Yusuke," she breathed as she pumped his chest. "You can do it; just breathe." Once more she leaned in, whispering life into his body.

His eyes fluttered open, and just as she came back up, he coughed; warm seawater spilled from his mouth and nose, and he gasped as his lungs seized, desperately seeking precious air.

Kagome nearly cried her relief was so great, and before he could even sit up and fully regain control of his breath, she captured him in a fierce hug. "Oh Gods, I was so scared!" She cried, pulling back to look him in the eyes. "Are you all right?"

He offered her a genuine smile of gratitude, relief he'd never actually express written in his deep, chestnut eyes. "Ya know, if you wanted a little lip action all ya had to do was ask," he rasped.

Kagome turned a rather vivid shade of red, and she opened and closed her mouth soundlessly, apparently flustered beyond coherent speech. He snickered helplessly; despite the pain it caused him. He couldn't help it, really. The look on her face was priceless.

"Uh…but…I mean…I wasn't…" She stuttered, her mouth still dangling like a fish.

"Careful, now," he said. "You'll start trapping flies."

The priestess snapped her mouth shut and gave a very unladylike snort, crossing her arms with a huff. If he hadn't looked like death warmed over, she would have smacked him stupid. "Maybe next time I'll just let you drown," she muttered, heatedly.

He only laughed harder, much to her chagrin, though he seemed content to leave it at that. He eased back to the sand, wincing with discomfort as he did. "So, does it look as bad as it feels?"

Her expression softened. "Worse," she said, brushing the hair back from his eyes to better inspect the gash on his forehead.

"Don't go pulling any punches, now," he grumbled sarcastically. "Tell me what you really think."

She smiled broadly. "Hey, you asked." She took a gentle hold of his chin, tilting his head back and forth, and she hissed in sympathy. "He got you pretty good. This one might need stitches."

"Stitches? Nah, I'll just get Grandma to…" the detective trailed off and sat up quickly enough to nearly make himself vomit as he met Kagome's worried expression with one of his own. Simultaneously, they made the connection.

"Genkai!"

"Inuyasha!"

Kagome cried out as she stood up, her injured leg and muscles screaming in protest. She dropped, only to be intercepted by Yusuke as he was on his knees preparing to stand. "Whoa, easy now," he said, steadying her in his arms.

And in just in that fraction of a second, for reasons entirely unknown to her, Kagome could not help but notice just exactly how close they were. For the second time that day, she found herself blushing, though this instance was not nearly as obvious as the first. He was staring back at her, bruises and all, his expression one of innocent concern, and he spoke to her.

"Can you stand?"

It was enough to bring her back to reality, and just as quickly as it had come, the feeling left her. Kagome was thankful for it. They had enough to worry about, for the moment.

"Y-yes, I think so."

"Come on," he said as they struggled to help each other to their feet. He grabbed her arm and slung it over his shoulder, draping his arm in the same fashion behind her neck, and situating himself to support her weight, and she, his. "We won't get anywhere hobbling around like a couple of gimps. It'll be faster like this. Which way?"

"That way," she nodded. "We couldn't have drifted too far, I don't think."

They trudged along the water's edge in total silence. Kagome tried not to focus on Yusuke's proximity and how unusually natural it felt to lean on him like this. Instead, she opted for more important matters, like what might be ahead of them. She hoped the others were all right; she knew that Inuyasha could take care of himself, but that didn't stop her stomach from wrenching into knots or the vice she felt tighten around her heart. She'd never forgive herself if he came to serious harm because of her. She had to know if he'd come out of that building all right, and the longer it took, the more anxious she became. Given their condition, they were making excellent time, but Kagome still feared that they would be too late to be of help. The Gods only knew just how far away they actually were.

"Thanks, by the way."

Kagome started, surprised at the break in their companionable silence. She smiled, knowing that he probably didn't express gratitude that often. "Yeah, you too."

He grinned, and they continued on without any further discussion. Finally, after several long minutes, she could see the pier in the distance.

Suddenly, Yusuke stopped and frowned.

"What's wrong?" Kagome asked, confused.

"What's with the flashing lights?" He answered with a question.

"Well, it's not a parade, I can tell you that," a voice sounded. They both snapped their attention to the speaker, and Kagome sighed in relief. There, on a great slope of giant boulders separating the city from the sea, sat Genkai.

"Genkai, oh thank goodness," Kagome breathed. She dropped her arm from Yusuke's neck then, and hobbled over to the psychic on her own. Aside from the bloody remains of the shirt sleeve bunched in her hand and the open cut across her right cheek she was holding it to, the older woman looked relatively unscathed. However, Kagome could tell by the way she was hunched up that the psychic might be harboring some internal injuries.

"Are you all right? Have you seen Inuyasha?"

"Yeah, Grandma," Yusuke said, his voice still gravelly as he made his way over slowly. "What happened?"

Genkai looked up to regard them both soberly, and Kagome tensed at the look in her eyes.

"We've got a problem."

* * *

"_Maybe we should wait. He's been acting strangely, far worse than usual. I think he suspects something."_

"_If he suspects something then that's all the more reason to go on as planned, tomorrow. He only patrols the Southern border once a month—it has to be now. I don't think the pack can handle another month like this."_

"_I'm scared," she whispered softly._

"_I won't let him hurt you, Sakae. I swear it."_

"_And what about you? Even if you could protect me, could you protect yourself?" She was nervous, pacing. "He'll kill you, if he finds out, Shippou."_

_A bitter smile. "He'll kill me, anyway."_

"_It doesn't have to be this way!" She shouted, her voice cracking as she spun to face him. Her eyes were filled with a desperate entreaty, and not for the first time, he felt a sad longing stir in his chest. _

"_Yes it does," he spoke softly, and just by the way she held herself, he realized that she knew he was right._

"_Please," she begged weakly, tears of defeat already welling in her eyes. "Just come with us. I…we…we need you."_

_He sighed, brushing a stray lock of wavy, black hair behind her ear. Her resemblance to the priestess was superficial, but Shippou could understand what had captured the wolf prince's attention so. The thought pained him more than he let on. _He _would have never wanted her to be what she wasn't. _He _would have never shut her away inside that mountain. _

_But _she _wasn't his. And she never would be._

"_I've secured passage for you and the cubs into the living world. He won't be able to follow you there."_

"_What of the tribe?" She asked, her voice thick._

_"Hakkaku will lead them into the Northern lands. They'll find protection, there. Ayame will not turn them away." It was the only way, he knew. However tolerant the wolves of the East had been, they were an exception to the rule. No other clan would accept a mortal refugee._

_"So, that's it?" She asked, her tears falling freely, now. "You're just going to send us all away, and wait here to die?"_

_"You'll need time to get away."_

_"Why are you doing this?" She whispered._

_He looked away, unable to face her, and swallowed hard. "Do you really need to ask?"_

_And then her lips were on his, trembling and careless as she made a memory of him. He closed his eyes, his heart crumbling in his chest as he committed the sweet taste of her to remembrance._

_But it wasn't sweet at all. He frowned as her warmth turned to something cold and bitter, and he gagged when suddenly it was her blood in his throat. She was there on the ground, her children huddled at her breast, pale and bloodied and terrified even in the stillness of death._

_"Gods, Kouga." He breathed, falling to his knees. "What have you done?"_

_The wolf prince stared back at him, completely remorseless, even with the blood at his mouth and her heart in his hand._

_"It was you, who did this, Shippou."_

_His cold, accusing eyes turned green, and suddenly, Shippou found he was looking back at himself, awash in their blood. He clenched his eyes tightly, weeping in his shame, and when he opened them again, he'd drifted back 500 years in a single breath. It was Kagome lying there, looking back at him with those same unforgiving, sightless eyes—her skin still warm as the heart in his fist._

Shippou sat up suddenly, choking on the scream still hung in his throat. His heart hammered like thunder in his chest, and he fought the urge to be sick on the ground. It was the same image burned into his mind every time he closed his eyes.

_"Is everything all right?"_

Memories…nightmares…it didn't really matter; too often, Shippou couldn't tell the difference, anyway.

"_Shippou?"_

He drew a quivering breath and seemed to come back to himself, then. "Huh?"

The monk was watching him from the fireside, concern etched in his face. "I said, is everything all right?"

The fox looked nonplussed, as though he didn't really know the answer to that particular question. "Uh, yeah I'm just…" he stammered at first, then paused to assert himself. "Yes, I'm fine."

Miroku did not look convinced, but the tone of his voice told the monk he probably shouldn't pry. He smiled, dismissively. "Well, now that you're awake, why don't you join me?"

He seemed to consider the offer a moment before he actually took a seat by the fire. He looked to the mouth of the cave and frowned. "It's still raining," the fox observed.

"Yes," Miroku replied a bit distracted. "I have to wonder if it's a bad omen. Botan said it almost never rains in the spirit world."

Shippou didn't know much about omens one way or another, but he couldn't help but think that any omen on this journey would not be good. He kept these thoughts to himself, opting to let the soothing sound of rainfall and distant thunder fill the gap between them.

Several minutes passed in awkward silence, and Shippou couldn't help but notice how the monk seemed to be preoccupied with the object he was fiddling with. "What have you got there?" He asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.

"I don't really know," the monk replied, turning the disc over in the firelight once more before tossing it to him. "Kirara had it when they found us. I had forgotten about it until this morning."

Shippou turned the talisman over in his fingers, slowly feeling the edges and reading the inscription. "It looks familiar," he noted.

"I thought so, too," Miroku replied. "I just can't seem to place it."

Shippou hadn't made it a habit to learn much of holy trinkets or charms, but illusionary tricks and spells were his life. So, he knew precisely what he was talking about when he said, "This spell is unfinished."

Miroku's eyebrows shot up in question. "Unfinished?"

"Well, incomplete. Look at this." He scooted closer to give the monk a better vantage point. "The phrasing is awkward; there's a definitive end, but the beginning is vague, at best. And the invocation doesn't make sense. I've never seen a spell draw upon earthly elements without also calling upon Divine Light. Admittedly, it would _work_ as a simple cloaking hex, but there are much more effective and concise ways to go about it."

"Perhaps it was forged by an amateur?"

The fox looked thoughtful. "I don't think so. Just about anyone can cast a spell, but to bind one to a tangible object, much less forge a magical artifact, takes a great deal of skill. It's not likely that anyone with the ability to do so would slap it together with a half-assed spell. And then there's this," he turned the amulet up on it's edge, letting the fire illuminate four tiny grooves, equidistant along the perimeter. "These are too precise to be inconsequential."

"You think it fits into something else?" Miroku asked, furrowing his brow as he put the pieces together in his mind.

He handed the object in question over to the monk and leaned back against the cave wall, arms propped up behind is head. "I think it's entirely possible," he sighed. "Have you shown this to anyone else?"

"Not yet," he said, tucking the amulet back into the safety of his robes.

"You should show it to Botan in the morning, she might have an idea of where it came from."

The monk's eyes sparkled mischievously. "An excellent idea! Shippou, you are quite the wise man, indeed."

The fox rolled his eyes but couldn't stop the grin from spreading across his face. "You know, you'd probably get a lot further if you would just keep your hands to yourself," he suggested, his voice full of mirth.

Miroku dramatically brought his reprobate hand to rest at his heart, feigning shock. "My intentions are entirely pure, I can assure you. It's this damned cursed hand that dictates—"

Shippou laughed out loud. "You can feed that bullshit to the ladies all you want, but you and I both know better!"

The monk smiled outright, dropping his façade. "What can I say? I have a reputation to uphold."

"A reputation? Really?" Shippou chuckled. "And all this time I thought you were just a pervert."

Miroku did not dispute the fact. How could he? Instead he laughed, studying the kitsune from the corner of his eye as he did. He was glad to have the opportunity to spend time with the fox he'd known as a kit. He was different than the monk might have expected; a quiet seriousness hung about him, a hard glint in his eyes. Not for the first time, he wondered just what Shippou's life had been like without them. Inuyasha had mentioned that the kitsune smelled of wolves, and Miroku knew without having to be told that the only wolf tribe that would've possibly taken Shippou in was Kouga's. To be honest, Miroku hadn't particularly liked the wolf prince. However, as he spoke with Shippou in earnest for the first time since their reunion, and as he looked upon the laughing fox now, he couldn't help but think that Kouga—however foolish and stubborn—must have done something right.

"You've grown well, Shippou," he said, suddenly serious. The fox stopped laughing and looked slightly taken aback, though the smile never left his face. "What was it like? Living with the wolves, I mean."

Shippou's expression did not change, though the joy left his eyes. If Miroku noticed, he never said, because at just that moment Kuwabara shot straight to his feet out of a dead sleep and summoned his spirit sword before either of them could even blink.

Startled, they were on their feet in an instant, weapons at the ready. Botan sat up, surprised at the commotion. "What's going on?"

"Something's coming," Kuwabara said, tightening his grip.

Thunder exploded all around them, and the wind began to howl, creeping in through the entrance and extinguishing the fire to leave them in total darkness.

The ground began to quake…

* * *

_A/N: Thank you so much for all of the reviews! You guys really keep me going! Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. Between taxes, holidays, pre-school screenings, and work, things are going to be unusually busy for me for the next month or so. However, I still plan to update sometime in May; it just won't be quite as quick as this one._

_Many thanks to Gan Xingba, my wonderful beta! You don't know how truly good you've been for this fic! (**Insert shameless plug for One for the Ages, that you're all dying to read whether you know it or not, because my beta kicks much ass**) :)  
_

_Peace, all._


	10. Chapter Ten

**A/N: No, I wasn't in jail. Or rehab. Or dead. I just really suck. Sincerely sorry for the wait, folks—I'd like to say it won't happen again, but well…you know me. I just have to work as the inspiration strikes, or it'll suck. Invariably. Hope you all enjoy!**

**_Chapter Ten_**

"Ya know, we could just leave him there," Yusuke suggested with a grin. His eyes widened, and he ducked just in time to miss the rock flying straight at his head. "Kidding, I'm just kidding," he amended hurriedly.

The priestess scowled darkly. "Well, it's not funny. If we don't get him out of there before they realize what he is…" Kagome trailed off, not wanting to voice what might happen to Inuyasha should they discover the truth. As soon as they figured out those ears were real it was all over, she knew. He'd be shipped off to some government lab they'd never be able to find and subjected to the Gods only knew what kind of awful tests. She cringed at the thought, choking on the ball of lead she felt drop to her stomach. This was all her fault.

"Hey," he started confidently. "You don't really think I'm gonna let someone else kick him around before I get to, do ya?"

Her expression softened, then, and Yusuke gave a crooked grin that only looked half as ridiculous as it might have before Genkai healed his face. He mentally patted himself on the back at the ease of her smile. He hadn't like the worried expression she'd been wearing since they left the docks. If she was worrying, then she was that much closer to crying, and Yusuke honestly had no clue how to handle crying girls. Somehow, he didn't think a punch in the arm and a _'don't be such a wuss'_ would work on her like it did on Kuwabara.

"No, I don't suppose you would," she agreed, turning back to their intended target. She peered up over the bushes and eyed the entrance once again. They'd been watching the station for about ten minutes, trying to come up with a feasible plan of entry that did not include Yusuke's suggestion to 'just walk in and blow some shit up,' though so far, they really didn't have anything better than that. Kagome hadn't taken him seriously, but the longer she stood there, the more appealing it sounded.

"Maybe just a _little_ explosion…" she commented, mostly to herself though Yusuke had heard her clearly. He beamed, excited by the fact that someone might _actually_ consider listening to him when there were explosions involved.

"Not necessary," Genkai said a bit heavily as she limped toward them from a nearby phone booth.

The detective's face fell, and Kagome turned, raising a brow in question. "You've got a plan?" She asked hopefully, ignoring Yusuke's overly dramatic pout.

The psychic nodded and winced as she crouched down behind the bushes, motioning for the others to do the same. "Just watch," she whispered.

"Are you sure you're all right?" Kagome inquired worriedly. She did not like the heavy wheezing sound Genkai was making. The young priestess was fairly certain the older woman had broken some ribs. What if she'd punctured a lung, too? Kagome did what she could for minor injuries, but something like that was beyond her ability to heal. She needed real doctors and real medicine for that sort of thing, not herbs and prayers. "Maybe we should get you to the hospital."

"No," Genkai shook her head. "I'll heal myself once we get back to the room. Besides, I've had much worse than this, I assure you. Right now we have more important things to worry about."

"Yusuke and I can handle this," Kagome protested. "You should—"

Genkai brought a withered finger to her own lips, a silent gesture for Kagome to stop asking questions and pay attention. Kagome snorted, ready to chastise the old psychic for not taking better care of herself when suddenly, police officers began streaming from the building in a flurry of guns and curses. Seconds later, they sped away, a whirlwind of lights and sirens.

Yusuke sat wide-eyed. "Damn, Grandma," he sputtered. "What'd you do?"

She smirked, a mischievous gleam in her eyes that told Yusuke he'd never know the half of it. "Does it really matter?"

* * *

Yusuke watched, with no small amount of amusement, as his mentor toddled through the front entrance in her best impression of helpless senior citizen. Of course, the policeman at the front desk rushed right to her side, just as she'd predicted, and the detective couldn't help but snicker. Genkai was quickly proving much more devious than he'd previously given her credit for. She'd even had the foresight to use spirit energy to nip the wires of the security camera at the front entrance before entering its line of sight. 

If Yusuke didn't know any better, he might think she had done this before.

"What's so funny?" Kagome whispered.

He paused, thinking it over before shaking his head with a smile. "Nothing," he answered in hushed tones. "There's the signal. Let's move," he said quickly, grabbing her by the wrist and pulling her through the door and down the hall before they could be seen.

The spirit detective was glad to see that Genkai's little diversion had worked well. The halls were practically abandoned, and though he knew there were bound to be at least a few guards lingering near the holding cells, it was nothing they couldn't work around. At least he hoped so. Aiding and abetting would be bad enough should they get caught, he'd rather not add assault on a police officer to the list.

"C'mon, this way," he gestured to the left after peeking around the corner to ensure they weren't about to encounter any nasty surprises. "They won't have had time to process him yet, so he's probably still in an interrogation room."

He stopped, flattening against a wall and motioning for Kagome to follow suit, which she did. Yusuke peered from behind the wall to examine a set of double doors that led to the interrogation wing. "Looks clear," he whispered, turning back to face her, "but chances are there'll be someone posted outside at the end of the hall where the rooms start, so we'll have to be careful."

She raised a delicate eyebrow at him curiously. "You seem awfully familiar with the layout."

He smiled, though there was no humor in it. "Yeah, well, when your mom's spent as much time in the drunk tank as mine, you kinda get to know the place."

Kagome's lips formed a silent 'o' in understanding, and she said no more as he led her down the dimly lit corridors.

* * *

Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. 

As far as Naraku was concerned, it was gospel. Hell, he'd practically coined the phrase. It was an art, really, and he'd spent fifty-odd years perfecting it with foolish, human clan lords and overzealous demons, alike. Thus, he was quite familiar with his own methods of deception. That Yokoshima wielded them so effectively did nothing to alleviate his discontent.

The demon was cunning, just as cunning as he and twice as ruthless, and while Naraku almost respected him for it, he knew better than to mistake their partnership for anything more than mutual benefit. For now.

The truth of the matter was that Naraku was a pawn, and he knew it well. Once he outlived his usefulness, he would be a liability—expendable. He knew this just as well.

And Yokoshima knew that he knew. He just didn't give a damn.

Naraku almost respected him for that, too.

Yokoshima wasn't the only one to play games, though, and he was no less aware of the fact than Naraku was. No false pretense existed between them, and though they were always cordial, the lines were well defined and understood implicitly. It was simply a matter of which of them became a liability first.

It was for this reason that Naraku was not overly concerned with Yokoshima. Wary, yes. Concerned, no. The youkai was planning to kill him…so what? So was pretty much everyone else he'd ever run across. It was nothing Naraku couldn't deal with when the time came. No, it wasn't Yokoshima that truly worried him.

Sensui, on the other hand, was a whole other story. It had been Naraku's experience that there was nothing so dangerous as a fool with a cause. One look at Sensui had told him that this hadn't changed in the last 500 years. Not that the human was actually a fool, but such crusades could turn the wisest of men into one. The fact that Sensui was a touch mad didn't help matters. No, best to do away with that one first. Right after he took care of business with some old friends.

A gentle rapping interrupted his thoughts, and the hanyou responded without moving. "Enter," he said flatly.

"Master Naraku," the child-creature spoke, his voice a raw, grating wheeze that sounded more like the bitter whine of crushing steel than a once living boy. "He wishes to speak with you."

"Yes," the demon said impassively, "I suppose he would." He turned, approaching the exterminator and casually tracing the line of the boy's jaw with a slim, pale finger. He tipped the child's face up to regard him, almost curiously, before gripping his chin in a painfully tight hold. His claws punctured the skin, and blood, cold and thick like tar, began to ooze from the wounds.

Kohaku did not so much as flinch.

Naraku gave a satisfied smirk and abruptly let go. "Bring me the shape-shifter. I have work for the two of you."

* * *

"Now, let me see if I've got this right Mrs…uh…Roboto," Osamu started, eyeing the old psychic from over the report he'd taken for what _had_ to be the tenth time. "At approximately 10:30 p.m. you were attacked in the parking lot of Sho enterprises by two teenage boys. They stole your purse, and your…dog? Is this correct so far?" 

Genkai nodded vigorously, and Osamu checked his watch. Shouldn't that shrink be here by now? "Okay. Now, the first was tall, you say, about two meters, brown hair, brown eyes—he was the one with the gun, right?"

"That's right, officer."

"And the other was smaller," he began, gesturing with his hand parallel to the ground to demonstrate the difference in height, "about one and a half meters, shoulder length black hair and dark eyes?"

"Mmm-hmm," the psychic nodded again, smirking inwardly when the officer seemed almost relieved. Well, she'd take care of that. "Yes, he was much nicer than that blonde fellow."

"Blonde fellow?" Genkai looked at him blankly, and he tensed again. "What blonde fellow?"

"What blonde fellow?" she mimicked.

"The one that you were just talking about!"

"I wasn't talking about any blonde fellow."

"Yes!" Osamu exclaimed, getting rattled. "Yes you were! I described the second man as smaller with dark hair, and you said, _'yes, he was much nicer than that blonde fellow.'_"

She looked at him strangely a moment. "Young man, are you alright?"

He looked positively flustered, now and exhaled sharply to gain some semblance of control. "I'm fine," he spoke through clenched teeth. "You said there were only two of them, but then you mentioned a third. Were there two or three?"

"Two or three what?" she asked innocently.

"Attackers!" Osamu was losing patience now.

"Attackers," she gasped. "Who was attacked?"

Osamu dropped his head to the desk with a pronounced 'thwack' and groaned. Some nights, it just wasn't worth it.

* * *

Botan didn't like the dark. There were memories there; fragments of a place she could never decide whether or not truly existed. Of things she should not know and yet could not reach. Of _before_. When light and divinity were avenues yet unexplored, and she was a creature of real mortal flesh. Flesh so easily marred, distorted by the things found there in the cold and the darkness of night absolute. 

Just like now, in a cave in spirit world, where the ground was shaking itself apart below her knees, and her fingers were slipping through the cracking rocks, and the rumbling was so loud, it drowned the sound of her voice even in her own head. And she scuttled, clumsy and terrified, across the cavern floor, reaching out into that darkness, desperately seeking one of her comrades before it swallowed her whole.

That's when she felt it, seeping into her veins like a poison that turned her body to stone from the inside out. Her breath went cold, and the inky black that surrounded her filled her belly and flooded her mind until she was nothing but the dark and the silence within.

And there she waited, cocooned in the abyss, as the Gods whispered unto her in the tones of infinity.

* * *

Yusuke peered around the corner cautiously, eyeing the guard posted outside the interrogation room, before turning back to face an anxious to Kagome. He gestured silently toward the guard and nodded toward the door at the end of the hall, pulling the rock he'd pilfered from the lot out of his pocket. He turned it over, inspecting it closely. With luck, he could knock the poor bastard cold without seriously hurting him. Now, if he could aim just right… 

She caught his hand just before he let it fly. "Wait," she whispered desperately.

Yusuke wrinkled his brow in confusion. "What?" he asked, just as quietly.

"What about Tetsusaiga?"

"We'll worry about Tets…Testtube…Tes-whatever-the-fuck-it is later!" He said, exasperated. "He's right behind that door. Let's just get this over with."

"No!" she exclaimed, clapping a hand over her own mouth when she'd spoken a bit too loudly. Yusuke eyed her, taking a moment to check on the guard, who had luckily heard nothing of her little outburst. She flushed, and mouthed a quick 'sorry' before continuing on in a much more subdued tone. "You don't understand; bad things happen when Inuyasha is separated from his sword. We won't have time to get it once we've freed him, and you know they've disarmed him by now. We'll have to find it first."

He paused, apparently thinking it over. "What sort of bad things?"

Kagome put her hands on her hips and gave him a look that reminded him entirely too much of Keiko when she meant business. "The kind of things that are going to happen to you if you don't get your head out of your butt and help me!"

"Alright, alright. Chill, sister. We'll get the damned sword," he grumbled. "Actually," he amended after a moment of thought, "_You'll_ get the sword." Kagome's eyes widened considerably, and he broke out into a rather goofy grin. "We'll have to split up. Genkai can only hold out for so long up there. Don't worry, this time of night there's usually no one posted in the evidence room."

"But I don't—"

"It's that way," he told her, taking her by the shoulders and steering her in the appropriate direction. "Make a right at the end of the hall. Once you get it, make for the closest exit and don't stop until you're at the hotel."

"I'm not leaving you! Or Inuyasha!" she protested, heatedly.

"Believe me you won't have much of a choice. Now go—I mean it. Don't stop until you get there."

"What are you going to do?" she breathed, suddenly very nervous at the look in his eyes.

"Whatever I have to."

* * *

He _saw_. Even through the dark and the smoke and the ash that scattered in his face when the ground lurched beneath his feet and drove him to his knees, Kuwabara saw everything in stark, horrifying detail. Watched helplessly as things far darker than shadow and night slithered up through cracks born fresh in the earth, worming their way into her flesh as snakes. 

And she was _screaming_. Wailing about sins never committed as she writhed and begged upon the cavern floor, and Kuwabara pawed his way across the ground like a child, praying there would be something left of the grim reaper by the time he reached her.

"Botan!" he cried, desperate to make her hear him, "I'm coming! Just hang on!"

But he knew, felt it thick like tar in his belly; the ghouls of this place were going to swallow her whole. He could see it in the way she began glow black with power—too much for her body to handle—how her eyes grew sightless, as though filled with ink.

"Botan, no!" Her body began to levitate, and her screams subsided.

It was going to kill her.

"Foxfire!" The air exploded with radiant blue light as the earth finally stopped moving, and Kuwabara stumbled upright, footsteps heavy on the ground as he advanced on her at a dead run.

He had to stop it.

"Kuwabara wait!" He didn't know who said it, nor did he care as he lunged forward without thought, grabbing her by the ankles, stealing the power from her body, and setting himself in stone.

And then he saw no more.

* * *

'_Ooh, that boy!'_ Kagome fumed. _'If he thinks he can get rid of me that easily, he's got another thing coming!' _She rifled through the various keys on the wall, searching for the one to open the locker she felt Tetsusaiga's energy coming from. With a huff, she roughly pushed one set to the side and cringed when they fell to the ground with a pronounced jangle. She supposed it was a very good thing Yusuke had been right about no one being in the evidence room at this hour, because stealth wasn't exactly her strong point. 

"Stupid Yusuke," she grumbled under her breath. He had a lot of nerve pushing her aside like that! Kagome wasn't dumb. She knew precisely when they just wanted her out of the way. Like she was made of glass or something! She pulled the appropriate key from the ring, muttering heatedly all the while.

And the thing that made it so damned infuriating was that it was Yusuke whom had done it. She was used to such displays from Inuyasha. She expected them, quite frankly, and despite how irritated that little stunt down at the docks had made her, she knew it was just par for the course. But Yusuke, the very same boy who she had just dragged, the Gods only _knew_ how far, through the ocean and saved his _life…_ARGH! She could just strangle him.

Kagome flung the door open on the locker with a bit more force than necessary and secured the Tetsusaiga in her grasp before heading back in the direction she'd originally come from. If he honestly thought she was just going to leave them there, then he was crazy. Or stupid. Kagome couldn't really decide which at this point.

She hadn't made it around the first turn when she heard it. Or rather _felt_ it, as it turns out. A rumbling, sneaking up through the soles of her shoes had her eyes opening wide and gave Kagome the distinct impression that she should have never left the detective alone to his own devices.

The all too familiar sound of a very irate hanyou and what had to be an army in pursuit only confirmed her suspicions. They barreled around the corner like a herd of pigeon-toed buffalo, a blinded Inuyasha flung over the detective's shoulder swearing for all he had.

"You've got about two seconds to put me down, motherfucker!"

"Not that I wouldn't love to just drop you on your ass, but we really don't have time to argue about this!" His eyes narrowed in on the priestess at the end of the hall and he growled. "Hey! Didn't I tell you to get the hell outta here?!"

"Didn't I tell you I wasn't leaving?" she retorted, one hand on her hip and oblivious to the shouts coming from just down the hall.

"Kagome!" Inuyasha called.

"Oh Inuyasha, are you alright?" She gasped and then let out a surprised squeak as Yusuke grabbed her by the wrist, dragging her along as fast as they could go.

"Not now, damn it! Let's move!"

"I told you put me down! I'll take care of these assholes!"

"And a wonderful job you were doing of it before we got here, Braille-boy."

"Why you—"

Kagome screeched as the plaster of a section of wall next to her head exploded with force. "I said stop!" a voice from behind them echoed, "don't make me shoot!"

"Go, go, go, go, go!" Kagome cried in rapid succession, ducking her head as they flew through the narrow passages, making for the closest exit as fast as their legs could carry them. Kagome felt her heart stop when she heard the clicking of hammers being cocked from somewhere behind them. "Oh Gods, Yusuke—"

"I don't think so," he said, flinging her through the side exit it had taken forever to reach, and powering up his shotgun. He fired without preamble, directly into the ceiling above their pursuers, bringing tile and dust and pipe down around their ears, and buying just enough time to get out the door and disappear into the night.

* * *

Osamu looked at his watch for what had to be the hundredth time. Where was that shrink? He glanced up just in time to see the old woman tip the bobble-head Wile E. Coyote on his desk into a rather large stack of papers and send them shuffling to the floor. 

'_Damn it,'_ he cursed internally. That had to the fifth time she'd spilled, scattered, pushed, crushed, and/or maimed some previously undisturbed and perfectly harmless office supply since she'd been there. If he didn't know any better he might think she'd been doing it on purpose.

"Oh! I'm so sorry dear," she apologized. "How clumsy of me."

He stooped to begin collecting the pile when he heard the rapid scuttle of feet and raised voices. "Excuse me, young man," she interrupted his cleaning, "could I trouble you for a glass of water?"

'_Thank the Gods,'_ he thought, more than ready to step out for a moment. He might even find out what all the hubbub was about. "Of course ma'am, I'll be right back."

He stepped out to the water cooler, craning his neck to see if he could catch anyone for the scoop as he filled the plastic cup. Just then, one of his co-workers came flying by him, red-faced and hollering into his radio.

"Jiro, whoa, hey—slow down!" he called, catching the officer's attention. "What's all fuss? Where is everybody?"

"Jail break," he rasped, out of breath. "That kid with the weird hair you hosed down with pepper spray earlier. Somebody just sprung him!"

Osamu paled—no, way. He ran back toward his desk, oblivious to the water he was spilling all over the place until he set it down and reached into the top drawer for his gun. He froze, hand halfway in, when it finally hit him.

The old woman was gone.

* * *

**A/N: Well, not quite as long as some, but hopefully worth waiting at least a little while for. My apologies. Thanks so much to all of you who've taken the time to read and especially to those who leave reviews. It is very much appreciated, and often what keeps me going during those times that I just don't know if I want to with this one, anymore.**

**Special thanks to my wonderful beta Gan Xingba, whom is always there to keep me in line—his stuff is fabulous, and well worth reading. Check him out, you won't be sorry.**

**Also, a very special thanks to the divine Ms. Moon Step for letting me bounce ideas around with her, and making me remember why I started this little project in the first place. Thanks, Lovely! You're the best!**

**Now, while I probably don't deserve it, please clickety-click on that little blue review button. You'll make me a happy little hippie, indeed! Thanks so much!**

**Peace, all.**


	11. Chapter Eleven

_A/N: My apologies on the wait, folks, but unfortunately the real world rears it's ugly head once more. _

_Many thanks, once again, to my wonderful beta, **Gan Xingba**, who is freaking amazing, and I have no idea why you're here reading this mess when you could be reading his stuff. He's still in the process of looking this one over for me, but because this chapter is a special exception, I'm posting as is with only minor tweaking for the time being. BUT, as soon as he's finished with the rest of the edits, I'll be making a repost of this. So, look for more to come._

_This chapter is dedicated to my wonderful brain-clone **Moon Step**, whom has just graduated! Here you are, my lovely, a present for you (yeah, I know, I'm cheap )! Congratulations, and thanks so much for listening to my pathetic fanfiction drivel on a regular basis. Don't know what I'd do without you!_

_Anyway, enough rambling. Hope you all enjoy!_

_**EDIT: All revisions have now been made. Thanks so much to everyone taking the time to read and review, it is much appreciated! And thanks again to Gan Xingba, who pointed out some serious issues in this one that needed patching up. He is, as they say, the shit. Peace, all.**_

_**Chapter Eleven**_

Well, it was official: The Gods hated him—at least as far as Hiei was concerned. Not only was he being forced to travel with that infuriating human female, but now he had to endure the torturous, _incessant_ prattling of a hyperactive, dim-witted, inarticulate, demon oaf, who wouldn't shut up about said female. The fire apparition was sorely tempted to invest in a muzzle. All day. The demon had been rattling on _all day long_, and Hiei was at the end of his rather abused last nerve. His only consolation in the matter came in the fact that the wind master's attentions were focused solely on the girl, whom he was coming to realize was nearly as tired of the clueless idiot's continual chattering as he was.

He smiled, ever so slightly, from his place in the trees. He supposed it was worth it if it brought her some measure of discomfort. It served her right, the way he saw it. Payback for the royal pain in the ass she was turning out to be.

He sighed; for the life of him, he still had no idea what had possessed Kurama to do something so foolish as bringing a human girl into Makai. Demon slayer or not, the whole situation was just asking for trouble. That girl was going to be nothing but a distraction for the lot of them. Jin was a perfect example of that, already, the damned fool. At least the girl was a quiet nuisance.

He hadn't realized that he'd been watching them until she stirred uncomfortably and met his gaze through the firelight. Had he been anyone else he might have jumped at having been caught so unaware in his own actions, but, stubborn as he was, he focused the intensity of his stare directly on her, engaging her in a silent battle of wills.

To her credit, she did not immediately back down. The girl's gaze sharpened and she raised an eyebrow questioningly, almost daring him to come down and prove his point to her. Regardless, she had certainly proven hers: She wasn't about to be intimidated by him.

Unfortunately, the overall dramatic impact of her unvoiced statement was totally destroyed when Jin burst out into uproarious laughter and clapped her on the back abruptly, causing the demon slayer to nearly jump out of her skin and squeak like a mouse, which, in turn, caused the wind apparition to break out in a renewed fit of laughter.

"Aye girl!" he agreed heartily, misunderstanding her reaction, "that's exactly how I felt about it!"

She offered him a half-hearted grin at the anecdote, and Jin continued his story happily, oblivious to the exchange, despite the frustrated snort and nasty glance she'd gifted the fire apparition with as he did.

Hiei smirked triumphantly, pushing aside his annoyance at having their little contest interrupted in favor of amusement. So long as it was at her expense, he could deal with it.

"You certainly seem interested in something."

Hiei did jump then. He turned to the intruder standing on a neighboring bough and pinned him with a scalding glare. "What do you want?" he barked hatefully.

The ice master seemed thoughtful for a moment, letting his gaze drift to the pair conversing somewhat amiably around the fire. A slight smirk tugged at the corner of his lips as he focused once again on Hiei. "Maybe I should be asking you that."

The fire apparition set him in the heat of a rather condescending stare, the muscles of his face etched in stone except for the vein throbbing in annoyance at his temple. "Don't tell me you'd be stupid enough to believe that rubbish," he snorted. "She's human," he spoke, as though it were explanation enough, tone a careful mix of overall disinterest and blatant distaste.

Touya shrugged nonchalantly. "It's not my concern whom you lust after one way or another," he replied calmly, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Besides, who said I was talking about her?"

Hiei's eyes widened and he sputtered angrily. "Don't be ridiculous, you fool!" he yelled, actually going so far as to draw his sword as he did. But Touya was gone before his katana had cleared its sheath. He did, at least, have the sense to know when it was in his best interests to leave, it seemed.

Granted, that wasn't going to save him from one, or more, of the rather colorful means of torture Hiei had in mind. Hmm…he wondered if he'd be able to pick up turpentine and thumbscrews in Akuma…

* * *

"You know, it isn't wise to get on his bad side," Kurama spoke, never looking up from the street schematics he'd been studying for the last hour. A coincidental acquisition from a run-in with a group of less than adept youkai bandits earlier in the previous day, but one he was certainly grateful for. Unfortunately, the charts also appeared to be about a hundred and fifty years old, and he was reasonably certain that more than a few things had changed since in that time. Still, he was satisfied. Beggars can't be choosers, or so the human saying went. "When were you in Akuma last?"

"About two months ago," Touya replied, taking a seat on the ground next to Kurama and peering over his shoulder. "And I'm not on anyone's side of anything," he responded smoothly, then added as an afterthought, "unless it's my own."

The fox looked up then, raising a skeptical brow. "From whose standpoint?" He shook his head, "I can assure you," he spoke absently, spreading the charts out in order on the ground before them. "He may be forbidden to shed human blood, but he has no such restrictions or qualms where demons are concerned…how much of this has changed?" he asked, gesturing to the maps.

The shinobi studied them intently for several minutes before picking up a page from the middle and rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "This isn't even here anymore," he said laying it out to the side. "The North end of town is much the same as it was, but here," he pointed, "this has been overrun with gangs; we don't want to approach from there. The West side is still the quietest part of the city. I'd suggest coming in from here," he pointed again to another section of map, "around the old warehouse district…you know, I'm flattered, Kurama," the demon spoke with some amusement, "I didn't know you cared so much for my well-being."

"I don't." The reply wasn't malicious, just a simple statement of fact. "He does not work well with others as it is; things will be difficult enough without squabbling amongst ourselves."

"Well damn it, Kurama, you take the fun outta everythin'." Both demons paused, looking over their shoulders to find the source of the comment looming over them, a typically goofy grin set in place. "And 'ere I was lookin' forward to whippin' ol' shorty's arse a time or two."

"Not likely," came the sharp retort from across the campsite.

Jin chuckled, a mirthful gleam in his eyes despite the heated glare that he felt drilling through the back of his head. With mischief written all over his face, he leaned down and lowered his voice to speak in something of a hush. " Between you and me, I think he's just jealous cause my sword's bigger."

Kurama's eyes widened, and Touya erupted in a hearty laughter. It escaped no one's notice that Jin did not carry a sword. Kurama, however, was the first to shake it off. He peered around both sides of the demon's legs curiously, eyes scanning the rest of the site when apparently he did not find what he'd been searching for. The fox arched a curious brow and turned his attention back to the wind master, a frown etched into his face.

"Where is Sango?"

"Ah, she's just cleanin' up a bit before bed," he replied, crossing his legs and hovering in a seated position in the air.

"And you let her go alone?"

"Take it easy, man, ya ain't gotta worry 'bout that one none." He made a show of his left eye, which was still a rather vivid shade of purple and nearly swollen shut, to emphasize his point. "She can handle herself. Besides," he added when Kurama seemed as though he needed a bit more convincing, "she's got her kitty cat with her."

The fox sighed, knowing Jin was probably right yet still not entirely comfortable with the matter. He knew the slayer wouldn't have allowed anyone to follow her anyway, but he had rather hoped that after the last time she might have at least let someone linger at a safe distance. After all, there were demons capable of far more unpleasant things than death…

"_Regretting our decision now, are we?"_

"_As I recall, Hiei, it wasn't _our_ decision," _Kurama thought matter of factly, _"and I regret nothing. I am simply concerned for her safety."_

"_I'm insulted, Kurama," _the demon taunted_. "I can't remember the last time you worried for me like that."_

"_Do forgive me," _he began, never missing a beat_, "I was unaware you were so at risk for being raped and eaten. If it will ease your mind, I'll be sure to stand guard the next time you bathe."_

He felt as much as heard the irritated snort in his mind, signaling the end of Hiei's patience with their conversation, and the fox allowed himself just a small smile at the fire demon's expense.

"_If you follow me while I bathe I'll—"_

"Kurama?" came the slightly sharper voice of the ice master, shaking him back into the conversation at hand mid-threat. "Are you listening?"

"Forgive me, I was…preoccupied," the kitsune offered by way of apology.

Touya focused on him sharply before letting his gaze travel to the taller branches of the tree in which Hiei was currently taking up residence with more than a hint of suspicion. "A contact," he spoke after a few moments, shaking it off and returning his attention to Kurama as though it was nothing, though the kitsune was certain that he didn't simply dismiss the incident. "Here, on the upper East end of the city. We can pass through the industrial tunnels; I think it's our best bet to go unnoticed."

"A contact? Really…" Kurama trailed off, tilting his head curiously and mulling it over. "And you think this contact will have useful information?"

Touya grinned, amusement clear in the frosted blue of his eyes. "Trust me, he always knows something."

The fox looked over their course for several moments before nodding his acceptance. "Alright," he said firmly, rolling up the charts and slipping them back into their container. "I'll take the first watch tonight. The rest of you get some sleep; we are going to need all the energy and strength we can get tomorrow."

Jin smiled pleasantly, offering a stiff, two-fingered salute and a "yes, sir!" in jest before excusing himself to the base of a nearby tree and plopping down in the dirt, arms folded behind his head. Touya stood and bid the fox a good evening with just a slight inclination of his head before making his way closer to the fire and stretching out on the ground in a similar fashion. Hiei, of course, stayed precisely where he was and said absolutely nothing.

Kurama stood and stretched, working the kinks out of his muscles from having been seated on the ground for so long, and then made his way over to his pack to put away the parchments he'd previously been studying. Similarly, he took the small, glass bottle from his pocket, rolling it over in his hand to watch the fragment glitter with the firelight from inside, and began to place it in a hidden pouch but then thought better of it. He pocketed the bottle once again, having wisely decided that he'd rather keep it on his person than out of immediate reach.

Arrangements made and cohorts settled, he slipped away to the edge of the clearing, preparing to take up watch from the point closest to the direction he suspected the slayer had gone. He wouldn't go so far as to follow her, but he could at least be readily available, within hearing distance, should she run into trouble.

He'd just stepped to the tree line when the girl in question emerged from the darkness and met him face to face rather abruptly, causing them both to jump in surprise.

"Gods!" Sango exclaimed before she could stop herself, bringing a hand to rest on her heart as though the action would slow it down. "Oh, Kurama! It's only you," she breathed, easing the blade she'd released from her sleeve back into place subtly. "You scared me to death!"

The fox let a relieved chuckle escape his lips, dropping the hand he'd slipped to the base of his neck with the same tact as she, though he hadn't missed her reaction for a second and doubted very seriously that she had missed his. "Forgive me, I did not hear your approach."

"Yes, well, I just wanted to get a bit more comfortable before I settled in," she explained. "Kirara found a bit of fresh water." The demon cat meowed at the mention of her name, tails swishing happily as she looked between the two. "It's not enough to bathe, but certainly enough to wash up a little…I could show you to it, if you like."

Kurama felt a smile tug at the corner of his lips, pleased with the ease of her tone. She was still minutely tense, but he didn't mind. After all, Rome wasn't built in a day. "No, thank you, that won't be necessary."

"Right," she breathed, turning to face him after she'd stepped by, putting her back toward camp and looking just slightly flushed. He turned to her as well, thinking perhaps to continue their conversation, but the words seemed to have left them, and they stood there for several long, silent moments, toeing the dirt and feeling awkward.

"Well," Sango finally continued. "Good night, then."

"Yes, good night," he responded.

The girl turned to leave, when the decidedly dissatisfied growling mewl from her feline companion stopped her mid-stride. She cast a sidelong glance at the neko, whom hadn't budged from her spot, and let out a heavy breath. "Okay, _okay_," she whispered heatedly, turning back to Kurama, who honestly wasn't certain what the whole exchange was about, but was no less amused by it.

"Look, I…" she trailed off, looking everywhere but at him as she searched for the words. "I'm…well…"

"It's all right," he intervened, suddenly realizing what she'd been going to do. "You don't have to say it," he said earnestly, moving past her in his way toward the fire.

"No!" she said hurriedly as her hand shot out to take his wrist on impulse, and she met his gaze for the first time that evening—maybe the first time ever. Kurama stopped short, surprised at the raw emotion he found there, the sincerity and the shame he'd never thought to be privy to. And the kitsune was touched in knowing that she'd deliberately dropped her guard to him, even for the most fleeting of moments, in the need to make him understand and the hope of making amends.

"No," she continued, looking away and releasing her grip on his wrist with flaming cheeks, though she plowed on, heedless of her embarrassment. "I owe you an apology. I'm sorry. For everything. You've been good to my friends and me—helped us when we've needed it most—and I've treated you terribly. Gods, I never even thanked you for healing me. Twice. Or the time you packed me inside when I was paralyzed. And then there was that whole taking you _hostage_ thing…" the last was said with no small amount of annoyance at herself Kurama couldn't help but notice, and he might have stopped her here, but she kept going, rattling on nervously and determined not to let him get a word in edgewise. "…Implying that you were some sort of raging pervert, which honestly I should have known better. It's not like you're M—" she stopped suddenly and took a deep breath to collect her thoughts.

"Yes," Kurama grinned, thinking it over, "it seems you've been quite busy."

She smiled faintly at that, returning her focus to his eyes once again in spite of her shyness and exhaled deeply. "The point is, I'm truly sorry. My behavior has been inexcusable. And while I know that I am undeserving, I'd very much like to start over again. If it's alright with you, that is."

The fox smiled fully; there had been no need for apologies as far as he was concerned, but he realized what it must have meant for her to offer one. "I accept your apology, Sango," he replied, a little surprised at how good it felt to hear her say it and to openly accept the admission.

What slight tension she'd been harboring appeared to melt with his acceptance and Kurama couldn't help but smile even wider, if it was possible. It seemed that clearing the air had been what they both needed.

"Thank you, Kurama." She turned and left, then, without hesitation for a response or backward glance, though there was a certain lightness in her step that had him chuckling softly as he watched after her. He settled on the ground at the edge of camp, leaning his back against a particularly tall tree and looking up at the cosmos with a satisfied grin in place.

"Thank _you_, Sango."

* * *

"You'll need to put these on," Touya said, handing a set of robes over to Kurama, as Jin dropped another on the woman, letting it slip into place over her clothes…well, maybe not entirely into place. He circled the girl, scrutinizing the fit of the garment as she tried, unsuccessfully, to paw her way out of the hood with ten miles of excess fabric hanging from her arms. Oversized, it appeared, would have been a dire understatement.

Jin chuckled aloud and reached out to assist her, laying the hood back to expose her face, and Sango blew a steady stream of air straight up to remove the hair from her eyes, looking for all the world like a child in play clothes as she did. She held her arms out, looking down to examine herself.

"This isn't going to work like this," she said, only slightly annoyed with the way Jin kept pulling and tucking at the article, as though she couldn't handle the matter herself. Two days ago, he might have pulled back a bloody stub from reaching out to touch her like that—not that he was being entirely inappropriate, but given the way they had started their acquaintance, it was a miracle she was letting him stand next to her at all. However, if there was one thing Sango had come to understand about him in the very short time she'd known the wind master, it was that Jin, no matter how loud, brash, or…_overzealous_ he might be, was impossible to stay mad at. He was simply too good-natured.

"I'm going to trip over my own feet."

"We could always cut them off." Unfortunately, she couldn't say the same for all her companions.

Sango fixed the fire apparition with a particularly harsh glare, which he returned, entirely unrepentant. Well, they were certainly in a good mood this morning.

"You know, that's not a bad idea."

"Hey!" she protested indignantly, redirecting her scowl to the fox.

"Cutting that is," Kurama amended, digging through the pack. He smiled, emerging with a pair of scissors that the Gods only knew why he had (though Sango was beginning to get the impression that no matter what the situation, Kurama would be prepared for it) and turned to him. "May I?"

The ice master clearly wasn't keen on the idea, though he did seem to be thinking it over. He looked to his fellow shinobi, who merely shrugged his shoulders, and let out a heavy sigh. "All right," he consented after a moment, "but only along the bottom. And mind the ornamentation."

The exterminator lifted a curious eyebrow at this, and Jin pulled up the hem of the robe, exposing the intricate design and obsidian beads woven into the layers underneath. "The Black Rosary," he explained quietly, running a reverent finger along each pattern. "Every bead is a demon blessing, and each design, a part o' Hell's Zodiac." He winked at her cheerfully and continued on, oblivious to the way she paled at his explanation; her father must be rolling in his grave right about now.

"It's a powerful magic, darlin'. Subtle. So long as you're wearin' that, you're safe. Ain't nobody gonna find ya that cha don't want."

He bent down closely then, too close for Sango's comfort, and hooked a finger under her chin, tilting it up so he might better meet her gaze. The demon slayer blushed right down to her toes; had it not been for the fact she'd have tripped over Kurama, who was making alterations, she'd have bolted fast enough to make even Hiei's head spin.

"No matter what you do," he began, a seriousness to his expression she'd not previously seen, "don't ever take it off, Love. Ever. Not so long as we're in the city. Just leave the hood up, be quiet, and stay close to me. Do ya understand?"

For a moment, Sango saw red. What the hell did he think she was, stupid or just weak? But just as she took a deep breath and prepared to tell him _exactly_ what she understood, she noticed the look in his eyes, and her argument deflated. No condescension or spite burned in that deep, blue gaze, only anticipation and concern for her welfare, and Sango instantly felt guilty. One would think that after the situation with Kurama, she would have learned a little something about jumping to conclusions where demons were concerned.

Deliberately, she relaxed herself and offered him a slow nod in response. The wind master smiled brightly, eyes sparkling with mirth as he let go of her chin and stood upright, cuffing her playfully on the shoulder as he did. "That's my girl!"

Her cheeks colored again, and Sango glanced down to Kurama, who was on his knees before her, trimming up the last of the robe and looking up at her, amusement plainly written on his features. _Now, just what was so damn funny?_ Her dark eyes narrowed on him but widened immediately in surprise and embarrassment as the wind master put an arm around her and proceeded to squeeze the stuffing out of her.

Kurama's smile, of course, only grew. Exponentially.

* * *

Shizuru watched the fire dance in her fingertips until the wood was nearly spent before she finally lit the end of her cigarette and then blew the flame into nonexistence. She took a long, slow drag, feeling the smoke curl into her lungs with satisfaction and made an inarticulate sound in the back of her throat as she slid down her bedroom wall and came to rest on her bottom, looking out the second floor picture window with unseeing eyes.

Four days. It had been four days since Shizuru had seen her brother, and while she knew the big lug could handle himself, that didn't stop the block of ice that had taken up residence in the pit of her stomach from freezing her inside out. Something was wrong in the city. She would have known it even without the giant demon bug infestation. She could _feel_ it; right down to her bones, Shizuru could feel it.

It didn't take a genius to know that Kazuma and Yusuke were right smack in the middle of it, either.

Shizuru sighed, a long steady stream of smoke drifting from between her lips. Why couldn't he just listen to her once in a while? He should be at home doing his homework right now, preparing to earn a place in the world, not saving it. Honestly, what did he think he was doing out there, anyway? He couldn't even do his own laundry much less prevent the apocalypse. And it wasn't like he could put 'Spirit Detective' down on a resume. _'The idiot…'_

The shrill ringing of the telephone shattered the quietude, and Shizuru exhaled heavily, a thick cloud unfurling from her mouth as she lazily picked up the receiver, already knowing precisely who was on the line.

"Hey Keiko," she said, smashing the butt of her cigarette out in the overfilled ashtray at her side. The detective's girlfriend had finally broken down and called her the previous morning…and hadn't _stopped_ calling since.

Shizuru toyed with the matchbook in her hand, seemingly more interested in that than the conversation she was having. "Un-uh," she answered in the negative. "…un-uh…no…nope…your guess is as good as mine," she spoke rather unenthusiastically, taking another cigarette from the pack.

"Look kid," she began after another lengthy pause, her voice muffled around her indulgence. She exhaled heavily as she removed the obstacle from her mouth. "Don't lose sleep over it, alright? I'm sure it's nothing they haven't handled before," she lied unflinchingly. Why tell her? Nothing they could do about it, anyway.

She paused, nodding every so often and finally let out a long sigh, realizing that Keiko was every bit as stubborn as Yusuke gave her credit for. She was apparently not going to let this drop.

"Alright, alright," she conceded. "Tell ya what: I'm off tomorrow. Come on over after school's out, and we'll see what we can't dig up."

* * *

A long, agonizing groan filled the air as Kuwabara pulled up from his knees, his stomach already protesting the movement and his vision speckled with gray pixels.

Damn, but he was beginning to hate the Spirit World.

"Hey," came the tired response from somewhere to his right. "Are you okay? You're looking a little peaked."

Kuwabara nodded weakly, knowing just as well as the monk that peaked didn't even begin to cover it. Granted, he was getting along better now than he had been when they'd first entered the realm; he did, at least, have his spirit awareness back, but Kuwabara was beginning to realize that his body may never fully adjust to their surroundings. Especially not after what he'd put it through back at the cave.

He suppressed a shudder and swallowed down the coil of fire building back up in his gut having just thought about it. "Yeah," he spoke, muffled through his palm, before spreading his fingers to stretch across his face and rub his chin. "Yeah, I'm fine. What about her?" he gestured to the girl curled into a ball by their belongings. "Any change?"

"No," Miroku replied, looking only slightly better off than Kuwabara, himself. "An invasion such as this one puts great stress on the body—even an immortal one; there is no way of knowing how long she'll be out."

Kuwabara sighed, turning his gaze to the distant river. He hadn't said it, but Kuwabara wasn't stupid. He'd heard the hesitation in his voice and knew what he'd been thinking...what they'd all been thinking, although none had yet given it a voice.

Botan might not ever wake up.

Kuwabara had hope, though. Even though it had been three days since the incident at the cave, he, himself, had been awake for just one. And he was a mere human; if he could come out of it, then Botan could, too. He was certain of it.

Still, it didn't change the fact that she looked so...small lying there; fragile—like she was cut from glass. He made his way over to the reaper, taking a seat by her in the dirt, and hoping that just being near might help his friend from the dark, because he knew for certain that she was there.

He'd seen it himself. In fact, Kuwabara would say he'd seen too many things...

He'd never be able to say exactly what had happened when he touched her; he knew nothing but blinding, excruciating pain, at first. Ice ran the gamut of his veins, freezing them solid and scalding him from the inside as though he'd swallowed lava. Kuwabara rather thought it something akin to the electric chair.

And then came the dark. A shroud of malcontent fell over his mind as he felt things there he'd never known. Places he'd never seen. People he'd never met. Snippets of times most horrific—all brutal and bloody and agonizingly familiar. A woman raped to death in the streets. A tiny child beaten until his last painful, blood-filled breath. A man disemboweled and his children burned... He'd sobbed in anguish and pain more intense than ever before, rending his heart in two as he felt each moment—each terror-induced scream and excruciating death as keenly as though it were his own. Kuwabara closed his eyes to the abyss and aged one hundred years in a single, ragged breath.

And when he opened them again, he was at home in bed, staring back at himself—a small boy once more—in the reflection of shattered glass as Shizuru read to him the stories of their youth. Of the world beyond and the birth of a God. It was a tale he only now understood. One hundred Hells: The price of a deity's soul.

He breathed heavily, and his stomach rolled over again as he brushed his fingertips through her hair. He'd known then, even before waking, that things would never be entirely the same for them after this. Their souls had touched. He'd been given a glimpse of what no mortal should know, and they were bound to one another, now, by more than just friendship.

And, if it meant saving her, he would do it all over again.

The shuffle of tall grass reached his ears, and Kuwabara stiffened. The monk shifted the grip on his staff from beside him, and they waited with tense shoulders and eyes of stone for the intruder to make himself known.

"The Eastern trace is clear."

Kuwabara found his breath again as the kitsune stepped out from the underbrush. It was about damned time. They'd sent him out hours ago.

"Come," he continued, dropping to his knees beside Botan and arranging her carefully for travel. "It's nearly dusk," he said as he swept her still form up onto his back. "The hounds will be upon us soon."

The Hell-Hounds. Ravenous, mindless creatures sent from the deepest pits of Spirit World, hoping to feed on the souls of living intruders. 'Spirit World Security,' Shippou had called them. Kuwabara had yet to see them, but Miroku had informed him all about them. It seemed that he and Shippou had had more than their share of trouble after they had fallen into the shadows.

"Can you form your spirit sword?" Shippou inquired, to which Kuwabara nodded in the affirmative. "Good. You're going to need it."

* * *

_A/N: Thank you so much to all of you whom have been so very patient with me. Your reviews and kindness really brighten my day and keep me hanging with this one even when I'm not so sure I should. You've all been wonderful!_

_Now, I know I probably don't deserve it, but if you could all find it in yourselves to please feed the author, I'd very much appreciate it. I'd really like to know how you all felt about the chapter. Thanks again, and I hope you enjoyed this little tidbit of mine._

_Peace, all._


	12. Chapter Twelve

**A/N: Well, I'd hoped to have this one completely re-typed for you all last night, but as fate would have it, it just didn't happen that way. My apologies. I know it's been forever, and I appreciate you all so much for sticking with me. I've got the next chapter of this one done as well, but I'm honestly just not certain when I'll have time to typeset it where I can update. As soon as I get the chance, however, rest assured I will. Enjoy, and if you are so inclined, please feed the author. Much love and peace.**

_**Chapter Twelve**_

The creature hit the ground, howling out with a terrible shriek that chilled Kuwabara to the bone. No matter how many times he'd heard it in the last two days, it never ceased to do so.

That didn't mean he was going to take pity on the hellish beast. By now, he knew better.

Spinning his sword in the air, he gripped the hilt firmly and struck down, straight into the earth. The hound evaporated upon impact, scattering like ash as the first rays of dawn peeked over the mountaintops.

Kuwabara stood, panting, letting the warmth of rose and gold wash over his face like a prayer. It was morning. Thank all the gods, it was morning.

He wiped the sweat from his brow and extinguished his blade. "You alright?" he asked, turning to face the monk just in time to see the last set of ofuda flutter to the ground and Miroku drop down hard on his knees, exhausted.

"Yes," he answered, voice like sandpaper and grout. He took a heavy breath and swallowed to clear his throat, though when he spoke again it was thin, diluted from the normally rich timbre of his usual tone. "We've survived another night, it seems."

"Barely," he supplied, quietly. Kuwabara wasn't sure if they'd be able to say that in another night or two. Every evening the dogs would set in, more and more vicious with each passing day. They learned, too, which made them twice as deadly. Instead of just the stupid slavering beasts one might expect, they adapted to their counterattacks, their moves, their defenses. The truth was that they were running out of strategies, and while Kuwabara left most of the strategics up to Shippou and Miroku, he knew when they were at the end of their rope.

"This way," the fox gestured, shifting the still silent girl in his arms to a more comfortable position. "There should be a place to rest before the next junction. You two will need to recover your spirit energy in the event we don't shake these things when we cross the river."

True enough. It was the best Shippou could offer them for the time, rest and protection. They'd discovered rather early on that the demon's weapons were useless against what they were facing. The Hellhounds responded to holy energies—spirit power—only, leaving the humans to shoulder the burden of dispatching them and Shippou to plan, navigate, and provide shelter and protection during the daylight hours.

For now, they were making do. The fox had a theory that crossing Styx into the third realm would perhaps remove them from the hounds' jurisdiction, so to speak. He'd used a lot of fancy language and supporting thoughts for his conclusion that, to be honest, Kuwabara didn't understand in the slightest, but he didn't care. Anything was worth a shot.

Granted, Shippou had neglected to mention they would likely be jumping from the skillet and into the fire, but somehow, Kuwabara sensed it already, anyway. And frankly, he didn't care about that either.

They trudged onward, speaking very little as they passed through the steadily thicker foliage. His pack was beginning to feel like a slab of solid granite, and Kuwabara noticed the monk's steps getting sloppier. It was frustrating; before, he knew they both could have done better, gone farther, without need for rest.

He supposed he had the Spirit World to thank for that one, too.

"Here," Shippou spoke after a time. "We'll stop here for the day." The coverage was adequate enough.

Kuwabara dropped his pack to the ground without preamble, and Miroku sank down against the trunk of a particularly large tree, leaning his head back against the grain of the bark and letting out an immense sigh before rolling his head around to see Shippou arranging the grim reaper carefully on the ground.

"How is she?" he asked, though the tone of his voice told them he expected no change.

"Same," Shippou grunted as he stood. "I know it's just going to rain, but I'm going to get firewood together. Can one of you stay awake for a bit longer, until I return?"

"I'll do it," Kuwabara responded, kneeling in the dirt next to Botan. He lifted her head carefully into his lap and brought his canteen to her lips. It wasn't much, but for now it was all he could offer her.

Shippou watched the spirit detective brush the hair from her eyes and felt something akin to sadness stir in his chest. He nodded stiffly and turned away, pretending not to hear the whispered plea as he swept away from the site.

"Please, wake up..._please_..."

* * *

The girl was a lot more curious than she let on. It surprised Touya, if he were to admit the truth of it. Granted, she'd paid heed to Jin's advice and not said a word as they entered the outer limits of Akuma, and she remained relatively close within their ranks during their trek through the tunnels.

Still, more than once Touya couldn't help but notice how Kurama had to practically herd her into their desired direction, coaxing her away with a carefully placed arm around her back and words murmured too low for him to make out, though at one point he could have sworn the fox had been telling her what an underground rail was. Really, she had seemed fairly intelligent for a human; she'd have had to have been hiding under a rock not to know what a subway was.

Just because they were demons didn't mean they were technologically and industrially inept, after all.

And she was jumpy as all hell, too. It worried him just a bit, the way she flinched at...well, damn near everything. She might blow their cover, and then they'd be in one hell of a mess.

For the most part, he just couldn't make sense of it. He'd seen her face off against Jin, who had to be more than twice her size, and not bat an eyelash. She didn't have an ounce of fear in her whole body as far as he could tell.

The demon took a moment to study her from behind (not an easy thing to do in that big ass shinobi robe, but he managed) as she paused to glance in the window at some little dive off of Bones Avenue. The T.V. flipped on inside and Touya thought the girl was going to come unglued. Really, it was funny; she never made a sound, but she had to have jumped a foot.

She stopped then to take a closer look at the offending object, reaching a cautious finger out to touch at the glass, and Touya had to suppress a chuckle at the oddness of it.

Honestly, you'd think she'd never seen a television before.

"Best keep moving," the ice apparition told her as he sidled up to stand even with her. "We don't want to be caught lingering here."

Sango nodded and moved quickly to catch up with Kurama, giving Touya the impression that he made her slightly uncomfortable.

Hn. He'd swear, humans got weirder by the day.

They traveled on in relative silence, until the sun began to bleed and the neon glow from street lights and bar signs curled in on them.

"Is this it?" Kurama asked quietly as they paused before a hole of an establishment with partially lit script that aptly read, "The Pit."

Touya nodded, a not-quite grin fixed to his features when he noticed the girl immediately bow her head low as the soft green light threatened to illuminate her less than demon qualities. '_Clever,_' he thought, knowing that she desperately wanted to take it all in. Her eyes had been as big as saucers from the moment they'd set foot in the city, and while he'd been a little concerned at her apparent amazement, he suddenly felt a little more at ease with the situation.

"Go on, Jin," Touya said, gesturing his companion on through the doors as he took his place, once again, in the rear of the pack. "He's in the back room."

It had been deliberate, putting Jin at the head of the line. As large as he was, it only made sense to portray him as the leader. The intimidation factor was just as applicable in the demon world as it was the human one, it seemed.

Not that it kept them from staring, however. All motion ceased as the wayward group of soldiers ushered into the bar adorned in the traditional shinobi garb. It made the girl nervous; he could tell by the way she skittered in her step, bringing her closer to Kurama, who'd practically glued himself to her back. Still, they moved rather fluidly through the maze of tables and drunks passed out in less than appropriate places, and Touya eased the icy air he'd channeled into his fist. No need for violence, after all. Not yet, anyway.

The door was a solid slab of heavy steel, and Jin rapped three times, letting the echo of it cling to the air thickly within the sudden quietude. A sliding view window, no bigger than a Hershey bar opened, and piercing yellow eyes cut through the smoky dark.

"There was dust on the man in the long black coat," Touya spoke quietly, and the window closed abruptly with an audible snap, giving way to the heavy creaking that accompanied the irritating grind of steel upon concrete as the door opened, revealing a dimly lit room with a dark figure poised at the end of a long wooden table.

The troop made their way inside, a certain unease in the step of some as the attendant set them in the line of sharp scrutiny and the door closed like a death sentence.

A woolen blanket of heavy silence fell upon them, and Touya couldn't help but notice how the three newcomers to his company tensed at the snapping sound of a match striking the surface of the table as though it were a thunderclap.

The dark one was imposing, hidden as he was by the shadows. "You find what you were looking for, mate?"

Touya felt as much as saw the relief set in on Kurama and Hiei at the rich, yet gravel tone that told them precisely who they were dealing with.

The demon brought the match closer, illuminating the five o'clock shadow and deep blue of his eyes as smoke began to billow from the cigarette in his lips. He'd never been much of a smoker, but it just went hand in hand when drinking, and he was definitely a drinker.

"You're the informant?" Kurama managed, somewhat amused.

A slow grin stretched across the demon's face as he took a long draw from his cigarette and let the smoke curl out from his lips. "The one and only."

Hiei let out a long-suffering sigh. "Gods, you're kidding me," he muttered irritably.

Chu laughed out loud, standing up to clap the smaller demon on the back, much to Hiei's chagrin. "C'mon mate, you know ya missed me."

Hiei snorted derisively, and Chu only laughed harder. "S'good to see you blokes again," he said, smashing the butt of his smoke under his heel and nodding to each respectively, guessing which was which on stature, alone. "Hiei, Kurama."

His eyes fell on the third, and while in the back of his mind he could have sworn Yusuke was taller, he chalked it up to too much drink and the fact that he'd slept since then. "Urameshi!" he greeted amiably. "Damn, it's good to see you!"

Jin stepped forward to place himself in the path of oncoming disaster but found he was, unfortunately, not quick enough. Chu struck out to land a good-natured punch to "Urameshi's" arm, catching the demon slayer by surprise. As small as she was, Sango could not withstand the overly-masculine greeting without falter, and the blow sent her staggering back.

Touya couldn't be certain just what happened next, but the outcome was the same, nonetheless. Disastrous. Sango would have tumbled to the ground in a heap had it not been for the quick reflexes of the fox at her side. However, those reflexes did nothing to save the heavy hood draped over the girl's head from slipping down to reveal her less than male, or youkai, features.

The room stilled, and Chu's eyes were as big as boulders as he looked into the face of the girl before him.

"Bugger me."

* * *

Yusuke sighed as the soft blue glow receded from his face, and he realized he could breathe through his nose again.

"Thanks, grandma."

"Don't get used to it, dimwit," she wheezed, wincing as she struggled to situate herself into a meditative position. "I'm not fixing your dumb ass every time you break a fingernail."

He would have snorted, but the sound of Inuyasha hitting the floor once again drew his attention, and Genkai looked at him derisively as he shifted uneasily to his feet and moved toward the disturbance.

"Stay out of it, Yusuke," she advised sternly.

They'd been fighting from the moment they'd returned to the hotel room, and while the detective was used to this sort of display from the two shard hunters by now, that didn't mean he was altogether comfortable with it.

"Mind your own business, grandma."

"I could say the same for you," the psychic noted, taking as deep a breath as her broken ribs would allow and doing her best to slip into the plane of self-healing. She would have extended the courtesy of mending wounds to Inuyasha as well, but he'd let her know rather rudely that he didn't need her help.

Yusuke had plenty to say about that, but surprisingly, and perhaps a little more maturely than any would have given him credit for, he kept his mouth shut.

The door to the bathroom flung open abruptly, and Inuyasha stomped out angrily, Kagome on his heels.

"But, Inuyasha--"

"But nothing! I told you to stay put, bitch!" he shouted, feeling along the edge of the wall for the window ledge. The effects of the pepperspray would wear off by morning, he told himself, but for now he was as blind and vulnerable as a newborn kitten.

"I was only trying to help!" the priestess cried, nearly reaching her wits end with the temperamental hanyou. Why couldn't he just grow up for once? She knew he was overcompensating for his feelings of failure, his feelings that he'd somehow let them all down and shown weakness not just to an opponent, but to what was supposed to be his peers, but Kagome was so tired of him taking his frustrations out on her she could just pull her hair out.

"I'd say you've _helped_ enough." His tone was clipped and sharp like ice—jagged and decidedly accusatory, a world of old pain and resentment never given voice lurking below the surface. Kagome stiffened at the implication behind his words, her jaw tightening with every strangled breath. Perhaps it really was more than simple frustration with himself.

There was a grain of truth there, and it hurt more than she cared to think about.

It wasn't as though she didn't already know this whole mess was her fault in the first place. Kagome was keenly aware of the damage she'd caused and the lives she'd been responsible for destroying from the minute she came through that well.

To know that Inuyasha blamed her, too, only made the raw ache in her chest that much harder to bear.

"I see," she responded with a throat gone thick. If he'd have realized just how much she'd worried for him, had seen the hollowed shadow of her pale grey eyes as they set in grim acceptance, he might have taken it all back.

But he couldn't, and so he didn't.

He could feel the difference in the air, though, and Inuyasha suddenly felt guilt gnawing in the pit of his belly when she knelt before him and brought an easy hand to rest at his cheek.

"I'm sorry, Inuyasha," she whispered, heart bleeding out on her lips as they trembled in sincere and heartfelt apology. "I'm so sorry."

She was gone before he could utter a single syllable of remorse, the soft click of the door the only sound to break the bitter stillness left in her wake.

* * *

It was a cheap hotel, and the balcony wasn't really a balcony so much as a glorified fire escape, but Yusuke found her there nonetheless, curled in on herself with her frail arms draped around her knees and her glossy black mane spilled out over the tops as she did her best to hide her face from the world.

She wasn't moving much now, but it didn't take a genius to figure out that she'd been crying.

Not entirely comfortable with the situation but unable to let it rest, he moved closer to her, sliding down against the wall to sit beside her in silent support, bringing his own knees up to his chest and breathing a sigh of utter exhaustion as his body stilled.

For a long while he said nothing though he knew she knew he was there.

Minutes passed and the priestess finally sniffled and looked up to meet his gaze. Her eyes were bloodshot and the silvery tracks of tears stood out in stark detail amid the moonlight on her cheeks.

She looked tired -- more so than Yusuke had ever seen her, and his chest constricted at the sight, making it difficult to breathe. He chose not to consider the reasons why.

"What do you want, Yusuke?" she asked, tone hoarse and worn.

Ordinarily, he'd have tried to make light of the situation. Yusuke was never good at being serious; it made him think too deeply, and some darkness is, perhaps, better left untouched. However, the words spilled from him before he could think better of it, and even when he could, he found he did not regret saying them.

"You always let him talk to you like that?"

The words were spoken softly, perhaps more softly than he would have intended, but the impact was like that of a thousand waves breaking upon the shore, and Kagome's breath hitched in her throat. She did not respond at first, but Yusuke could see her heart run the gamut of emotions behind the shine of her eyes before she settled on sheer exhaustion and something of a disgusted snort with no real energy behind it.

"You wouldn't understand," she replied, letting her head rest against the wall as she turned her gaze away from him toward the rapidly waning night sky.

"What's not to understand?" The question came with no haste or frustration, and Kagome had to admit a little surprise. Yusuke never seemed like the type to converse with her in this manner at all, much less patiently. It did little to curb her ever heavier burden of self-loathing, however, and the priestess had difficulty choking down the ball of guilt swelling in her throat, making her wheeze out a rough whisper of response.

"He's right."

"Bull shit," the detective spoke softly. "He lost his cool and got his dumb ass hurt for it. S'not your fault."

"He did it because of me," she whispered, looking long and hard into the coming dawn. "It's always because of me."

Yusuke knew without having to be told that she was talking about more than just the situation at hand but chose to focus on the now. He couldn't say just why it was so important for him to take her mind to a better place, but something inside him wouldn't let it go.

He'd think about that later.

"We were in a hell of a fix, and you bailed us out," he said in a tone that left no room for argument. "End of story."

"The story starts much further back than you realize, Yusuke," she spoke, turning to meet his gaze and pinning the detective still with the look in her eyes. They were suddenly much closer than he remembered, but despite the discomfort he felt building in the pit of his stomach, he did not move, and at least a part of him didn't care to.

He'd think about that later, too.

"I don't care," he said, more quietly than he'd intended. "Maybe you shouldn't, either. Life happens, Kagome. Whether we like it or not. And just because it doesn't always happen the way we want it to, doesn't mean he's got the excuse to take it out on you."

"He has his reasons," she defended.

"Doesn't mean they're the right ones," he countered quietly, and Kagome felt herself suddenly at a loss. She couldn't argue with that -- not really -- and she took a moment to study the stark definition of his eyes, the slope of his jaw as he looked at her, and the air grew quiet and still around them in that worldly synchronous breath before the sun breaks over the horizon.

Kagome felt her breath catch, and a haze settled over them like a shroud. She could lean forward, just the slightest...

He spun on a dime, standing straight up, and Kagome had to fight not to jump as he reached a hand down to help her from her position on the ground. "You hungry?"

She looked from his hand to his face, mulling the words over in her mind before she could process their meaning and nodded dumbly before easing her fingers into his palm. _'What just happened here?'_

The detective grinned as she stood upright and stuffed his fists into his pockets as he turned for the door. "Good, cause I'm starving, and I can't cook to save my life."

* * *

Miroku clamped down on a muffled whimper as he slid to rest on his bottom at the mountainside. Five days they'd been running blindly in the spirit realm. Five days he'd felt the knawing in his gut and known that something was very wrong.

"You okay, man?" Kuwabara said, his breath labored as he, too, came to a rest on a boulder nearby. The boy cast a long glance down the mountain and wiped the sweat from his brow. They were about halfway up, and the burning in his limbs told him it was going to be a long, long trip the rest of the way.

Still, he'd take it so long as the Hellhounds had stopped coming for them. It seemed that Shippou had been right; the dogs had not been seen since the group had made their way across the first ring of the river Styx. It did nothing for the growing cloud of dread settling over the back of his mind, however. The monk could feel it as well, he thought. He'd been quieter in the last day or so. Something seemed to weigh heavily on his mind, and Kuwabara couldn't help but think it was something more than Botan that troubled him, though her condition plagued them all.

The monk nodded tiredly in mediocre reassurance. "Yes, I'm fine, thank you." It was a lie, of course, though Miroku was glad to find that Kuwabara seemed content to let the matter drop. He flexed his right hand and noted the change. He'd thought it simply his imagination at first, but the longer they were here...

"You sure, Miroku?" The monk glanced up, trying not to appear startled. The fox, it seemed, wasn't buying it. His green eyes sharpened on the holy man as he gently slipped Botan into Kuwabara's care. "You haven't been sleeping well."

If at all. The two shared a long look, and Miroku realized they would be speaking later. Shippou wasn't going to let this go. Maybe he shouldn't.

"Yes," he sighed. "I'm certain. I fear exhaustion is taking it's toll on us all."

Shippou hesitated, watching the man closely a moment more. "Perhaps," he spoke quietly, no small amount of suspicion in his tone. Miroku got the impression he would have said more on the matter if not for the startled gasp to his right and Kuwabara's nearly incoherent, excited babble of speech thereafter.

On the fifth day, Botan stirred.


	13. Chapter Thirteen

**A/N: Same situation still applies, my friends. Still no internet. Still got a crappy computer. I am, as you can see here, working around it. Hope you guys enjoy this little project of mine. Much love to YFate who took the time out to beta the first eight pages or so of this for me. I'd have given her the rest, but I'm not sure when I'll get back to a non-work computer, so I went ahead and posted. Changes may be forthcoming for this reason. At any rate, she's a wonderful author herself, and you should all go check out her work. Right now. Seriously.**** That said, please feed the author, if you are so inclined. Peace.**

_**Chapter Thirteen**_

"You gotta be kiddin' me," Yusuke groaned, burying his head beneath his pillow and burrowing further into the covers. By his calculations, it was precisely five minutes to no-way-in-hell was he getting up. He didn't even think the sun was up yet.

"It's no joke, dimwit," Genkai groused, making a grab for the detective's pillow. "Get up and go with her."

Yusuke snatched at the air, fumbling around with his eyes closed for what she'd taken before he finally just decided to say the hell with it and snuggled down below his blankets, pillow or no. "No way, Grandma," he mumbled.

"It's alright, Genkai," he heard the priestess speak softly, presumably trying to keep from waking dog boy, though he really didn't understand why she should give a shit. "It's just a few supplies. I'll be back in no time."

"It isn't safe, and you know it," the psychic stated flatly, leaving no room for argument. "He _will_ be going with you."

"Trying to sleep here," Yusuke growled unpleasantly. Honestly, how was a guy supposed to get any rest with all that noise?

"I said get up, slacker." The old lady was starting to sound pissed. Not that Yusuke really cared. She always sounded pissed when she was talking to him, as far as he could tell.

"Damn it, Grandma, back off," the detective grumbled. "Send dog boy."

"_Dog boy_ is incapacitated," the psychic intoned. "Now, get your stupid ass up and get dressed."

She was flatly ignored.

"I'm warning you, Yusuke," Genkai practically growled.

Nothing.

Genkai sighed heavily. Alright, if that's the way he wanted to play it. Diplomacy had never really been her forte, anyway.

He heard it just before it hit, and Yusuke squealed like a little girl when the ice water washed like a river down his back and into the sheets. He jumped up, swearing and soaked to the bone.

"You old bitch!" he cursed, knowing that she'd waited just long enough for him to get good and comfortable again. "That was freezing!"

Genkai grinned pleasantly. "Oh good, you're up."

* * *

He bitched all the way into town and then some. In fact, he was still grumbling when they finally did make it to Soto's Market. Kagome didn't really mind. It kept her occupied on something other than the fact they were alone together. Again. Honestly, she'd hoped to use the time this morning to get her thoughts in order.

Genkai, on the other hand, had other ideas. She'd told Kagome in no uncertain terms that she was not to leave their company alone at any given time. It had made her angry at first, thinking Genkai honestly believed she couldn't take care of herself, even after she'd bailed them all out at the harbor. The psychic had been quick to clarify, however, telling Kagome she was likely the most targeted among them, given her ability to seek the jewel shards and if what the psychic had been told about Naraku were true.

She had a point; Kagome had to give her that.

But still, why Yusuke? She would have been about as comfortable with Inuyasha at this point. She hadn't seen him yet this morning, which ordinarily would have been her first priority (Kagome suspected the hanyou still couldn't see—a thought that scared her more than just a little bit—or he'd have been pestering them all bright and early), but she just couldn't bring herself to face him yet. Not after all that had been said.

And some that had nearly been done.

Gods, what was she thinking! Two more seconds and she would have kissed him, whether his company had been an open invitation or not. Kagome really couldn't say that Yusuke's intentions had been anything other than simple camaraderie; he'd given her no indication that he wanted anything more than that, and for all she knew, he had someone waiting on him somewhere. The sudden flare of guilt she saw burning in the pools of his eyes when he'd pulled back suddenly pointed in the affirmative. Still, it made her wonder if she'd been as alone in her sentiments as she'd originally thought.

The truth was they had both been spellbound. It was a feeling and a look Kagome had been keenly familiar with in her time with Inuyasha and…

Kagome blanched. What was wrong with her? Hadn't she learned anything after this whole stupid mess? She'd already destroyed one man and unintentionally trapped another within unconventional dimensions in their devotion to her. And despite all of this—the pain she had caused, the lives she had torn apart, and knowing, _knowing_, where her allegiance should lie—she betrayed them both by running around goo-goo-eyed over—

"Hey," he nudged the daydreaming priestess with his elbow. "You coming in, or are you just going to stand outside on the sidewalk and stare at it all day?"

Kagome flushed. "I—I'm coming!" she stammered. "I was just waiting for you."

The detective's eyes sparkled in merriment. "That so?" he asked amusedly, opening the door for both of them. "Looks like you should'a waited for that poor sucker on the bike," Yusuke laughed, gesturing back at the young man picking himself off the ground and groaning.

Kagome's face burned as she realized what had happened. She'd been so distracted she hadn't even seen him. He must have swerved to miss her. "Oh goodness," she breathed, sliding the oversized sunglasses down on her nose for a better look. "I'm so sorry. Are you okay?"

He gave her the finger.

Kagome sighed. At least he'd heard her say she was sorry. Well, if he'd heard anything over Yusuke's obnoxious hee-hawing. Kagome glowered at him and shoved the dark lenses back up into place, not that it did anything but make him laugh that much harder. She pushed her way inside, stomping in her embarrassment.

Big, stupid, pain in the ass.

"Hey now, don't be that way," he said, failing miserably to hide his laughter. "I think concrete was a good look for that guy."

"Oh, stuff it, Yusuke," the priestess grumbled, making her way toward where she presumed the medical supplies would be. She wasn't familiar with this particular market; it was clear on the other side of the city from her stomping grounds. "Let's just get our stuff and get out of here. It's getting crowded."

She had a point, he realized. Yusuke was never one for crowds of people, and this time of day, it was only going to get worse in here. "This way," he lightly grabbed her elbow and pulled in the opposite direction. "I've been here before."

"That would have been nice to know," she said, coming to a stop in front of the bandages. She squatted down, studying the price and quality. Kami! She never realized how much her mother spent on her supplies when she went through the well.

"Like once," he replied, annoyed. "What does it matter anyway?"

She stood, arms full of bandages and salves. "I just hope no one recognizes you," Kagome responded, shoving packages into his arms to free up her own. "That's the last thing we need."

"Relax, I'm not exactly Mr. Popularity," he said, dryly. "And what the hell is all this? I never said I'd be your pack mule."

She grinned and batted her eyelashes. "No, but you will," she responded in a singsong lilt. "Besides, we've still got to grab some food, and I need room to carry it."

Okay, so he wouldn't argue there. Food was important enough that he'd let her slide on that one.

Hell, he might just let her slide on a lot of things, if she played her cards right. Which was stupid, and he knew it. Admittedly, the priestess was beautiful. She was kind, smart, funny—he liked nothing more than their repartee—_and _she had saved his life. More than once, really.

But she wasn't Keiko.

Yusuke's stomach knotted up at the thought. He'd almost kissed her last night. He managed to come back to the presence of mind needed to pull away, but he knew deep down, he hadn't wanted to.

Gods! What was wrong with him? Keiko had been there for him practically since birth. She'd put up with his crap when absolutely no one else in the world would. She had brought him back from the dead, and just _knowing_ him since then had nearly gotten her killed more than once. How could he betray her trust like that?

Then, of course, there was the fact that he loved her.

Some love that was, he scoffed to himself. He hadn't even thought to check on her since this whole mess started. Granted, he knew that Koenma was keeping an eye on their loved ones, but still, she'd be wondering about him by now.

The detective sighed, heartburn suddenly creeping its way up through his chest. Stupid girls. They were more trouble than they were worth. He was just going to have to shut off any ridiculous urges he might have where Kagome was concerned. She was just another girl like any other…attractive as he found her. Didn't matter. She was no Keiko, and that was that.

"Kagome?"

The detective turned just in time to see the priestess go completely still. _'Oh shit.'_

"Kagome, is that you?" the girl tried again. The priestess in question exhaled, realizing it was pointless to try and pretend she was any other. She eased the glasses down, though she didn't remove them, and swept the room for any other potential acquaintances.

"Hi, Yuka," she breathed, smiling uncomfortably.

The girl pounced on her, trapping Kagome in a fierce hug before pulling back, hands still on the priestess' shoulders. "Oh my Gods, Kagome! Where have you been?" Yuka began to babble, a little too loudly for Yusuke's comfort. The detective approached, keeping behind them with a wary eye.

"Does your mother know you're here?" she continued, either not realizing the detective was there or just not caring. "She's had the whole city out looking for you!"

Not that it would have mattered if Kagome's mother had known she was here, because she wouldn't have been able to tell this…_Yuka,_ anyway. The girl hadn't stopped chattering from the minute she'd seen them, and it was clear to Yusuke that she was making Kagome more than a little uncomfortable.

He cleared his throat rather loudly, and the girl froze, eyes settling on him for the first time.

"Everything okay, here?" the detective asked rather suspiciously.

Yuka made no attempt to hide her own suspicion, and she studied him carefully before ushering Kagome to the side.

"Girl, are you in some kind of trouble?" Yuka whispered urgently. "What's going on? What are you doing with _him_?"

So much for not being Mr. Popularity.

Yusuke took a step forward at that, and Yuka flinched, prompting Kagome to take a stance between the two. She didn't think Yusuke would hit her friend, but the situation could get ugly nonetheless.

"Everything is fine, Yusuke," she placated. "Just give me a minute, okay?"

He didn't look entirely convinced, but the detective was willing to do what she'd asked. He stepped back, just enough to give them space but not out of hearing range, and perused through the comics. See, he could play nice when he wanted to.

Yuka didn't look any more comfortable than when he was towering over them, but she would have to deal with it. Kagome turned to meet her friend's eyes, a seriousness in them the other girl had never seen.

"You're going to have to trust me on this one, Yuka," Kagome spoke quietly. "You never saw me here today, do you understand?"

"What? _No_, I don't understand, Kagome," Yuka said, slightly frustrated. "Don't you know how worried we've all been? Your mother is about to have kittens, you can't honestly expect me not to tell her you're okay!"

"Yuka, please!" Kagome said more urgently, though still quiet enough not to attract attention. "I can't explain now, but this is important. You never saw me here, and if anyone asks, you don't know me."

"But—"

"You trust me, don't you?" the priestess asked.

"Well…yes, but—"

"Then you know I'd never ask something like this of you if it wasn't really important."

The other girl sighed heavily. "Yes," she admitted, though clearly not liking the situation she was being placed in. "Promise me you'll explain everything later?"

"Swear," Kagome replied, slight relief evident in the ease of her smile.

"If you need anything, you call me, Kagome," Yuka mothered.

"I will," she said, knowing she wouldn't. Kagome eased the frames of her sunglasses back into place. "Remember, Yuka, not a word."

"My lips are sealed," she said, embracing her friend one last time. "Be careful."

The priestess turned away, and Yuka was left with a sickly feeling in the pit of her stomach. She wondered if she could, in fact, keep her promise to Kagome, or more importantly, if she should.

* * *

She screamed, a bitter shrieking wind that erupted from deep within the well of her throat and behind the lids of her sightless eyes. She screamed, and it shook Kuwabara down to the meat of his bones, stealing the breath from his body.

"Shh, shh, shh," the monk scrambled, fighting to soothe the reaper against the flailing of her limbs as she clawed her way up from the darkness. "Botan…honey…shh," the monk tried again, grasping the side of her face in his reprobate palm, massaging her temple with the pad of his thumb.

"You've got to keep her quiet," Shippou said urgently as he sprang to his feet, slipping deftly from boulder to ledge, carefully scrutinizing their surroundings. "Every scavenger in spirit world will be looking for us."

"I'm trying," the monk responded sharply, looking to Kuwabara for assistance. She jerked, and Miroku hissed as the nails of her left hand made their way across the soft flesh of his cheek, drawing blood. "Damn it, help me out here!"

It wouldn't do much good, and Kuwabara knew it, but for appearance's sake, he'd be willing to try. Gently, he reached out and brushed the reaper's hair, leaning down to meet her ear amidst her struggles with the monk, and spoke.

"Botan," he whispered. "It's me. You don't have to be afraid anymore."

She struggled nonetheless, and if possible, her wailing only got louder.

"Damn it," Shippou cursed, "I said keep her quiet!" The fox was fidgety as all hell, and Kuwabara got the impression they were going to have to find a new resting place, and soon.

"It's not as easy as it looks," Miroku managed in his typical cool intellect, though she'd taken to beating on him steadily at this point, and frustration was beginning to take its toll. He lifted his forearm just in time to miss out on the hysterical swing she took at him, and the monk took the opportunity for what it was worth: firmly, he took her wrist in his grip, smiling when she did as reflex demanded and took a swing with the other, allowing him to capture it as well.

She was stronger than she looked, he'd give her that. Miroku shook as she writhed beneath his grasp, her cries echoing out across the valley below them. "Do something, Kuwabara," he groused. "I can't keep this up much longer without hurting her."

Kuwabara sighed, stretching his palm to rest across her forehead and breathed out deliberately, expelling the familiar energy and warmth to brush her senses. "Please," he whispered. "It's me. Come back to me."

The reaper's eyes flew open, wild and searching as she adjusted her field of vision to focus on his face, and her screaming turned to weak and broken breath. The monk eased his grip. Botan drew a sharp gasp, and slowly, her struggles ceased. "Wha? Kuwa…Kuwabara," she stammered, panting heavily. "The…they're coming."

She stopped short, shaking her head violently. "I, no you…you don't belong here!" she cried, tears working down the slope of her cheeks in streams. "You can't be here anymore! Any of you!"

Kuwabara breathed a sigh of relief, despite her stammering and apparent warning. Slipping his hand behind her head, he eased her into a sitting position. "Shh," he spoke, softly. "You're with us now." Wrapping his arms around her, Kuwabara drew his friend into a gentle embrace, letting her sob into his chest.

"No, you don't understand," she hiccupped.

"Doesn't matter," Shippou interrupted. "We gotta move. Now."

* * *

It started as most bar fights do: with a girl.

Okay, so maybe this was a little different than most, but in Chu's experience, 99 percent of all bar fights begun as the direct result of a woman, somewhere. It just so happened that this one was neither a hooker nor someone's sister. And just as a general plus, she wasn't someone's hooker sister. In Chu's opinion, it helped.

Still, she was a human, and he honestly had to say he never thought he'd be fighting for one. But Gods help him, there he was; before he could even think twice about it, he'd knocked that poor bastard clean through the door. The doorman skidded the length of the room, tearing up tables and chairs in his wake, before he slammed bodily into the wet bar. The shelves of liquor buckled above him from the force, breaking on one end and sending bottles sliding down to shatter on the unfortunate demon's skull.

He passed out cold, leaving the rest of the bar and its patrons to gape in open-mouthed shock.

Oops.

"A...a human," said a particularly nasty lizard demon, poking his snout in from that giant hole where the steel door of the side room had been and pointing in blatant shock. "There's a human in the bar!"

Chu reached out and snatched the lizard's nubby fingertip, eliciting a startled yelp as he stretched it uncomfortably around the smaller demon's back. "Now, now mate," he spoke, pulling the finger back up past the demon's shoulder blades and watching him squirm. "It's not polite to point."

All hell broke loose.

Sango wasn't certain just where to start, but she drew her blade in anticipation. Half the bar seemed intent on coming for her. The other half were just as content to fight with each other, and the whole building was swarming with chairs breaking, bottles flying and fists swinging.

"Honestly," came the annoyed droning from her left, as Hiei took the head of a rather grotesque looking...was it a cow of some sort? "You really are more trouble than you're worth."

Sango scowled but refused to dignify him with a response. She sidestepped neatly to avoid the claws of the cat-like youkai that slipped passed Jin and the neat line of defense he'd so deliberately set before her. She struck out and the demon yowled in pain as she pierced his gullet.

She dismissed him—a mistake as it turned out. Sango hissed when the razor sharp edge of his claws sliced through the fabric of her robe and uniform as she'd turned away, raking deep, angry furrows along her calf muscle. She twisted, preparing to bring a blow like thunder down upon the demon's face, but Jin beat her to it. He hoisted the demon up by the scruff of the neck, much like a mother punishing a young kitten.

"Not very smart, lad," he growled, shaking the cat hard enough to snap his neck. He flung the demon away effortlessly, the gleam in his eyes feral, though void of any true excitement. Sango found it comforting, in a way, to know he took no real enjoyment out of mindless carnage. It was duty, and nothing more.

"Stay close, Love," he said to her, grinning that toothy smile she'd grown so accustomed to over the last few days. "Take care of ya, I will."

She wasn't going to bother to tell him she could take care of herself. Right now, she was busy holding off the swarm. Gods! They just kept coming. Sango hadn't even known there were that many in the bar.

Beside her, Kurama and Touya were combining their efforts with shards of winter and what looked like Kurama's rose petals. Whatever they were doing was working, as they managed to fell entire groups of youkai quickly and efficiently. Still, they kept coming.

Honestly, this was getting ridiculous. She dodged swiftly, avoiding the wooden barstool aimed directly for her head and cringing just a bit when it smashed into a thousand pieces on the wall behind her. Damn, that could have been a serious migraine. She followed the object's point of origin with her eyes, and her gaze locked with some sort of elemental demon. Her focus sharpened as he hissed out a warning to her.

"You're mine, human," the ugly beast leered, eyes openly roaming the planes of her body despite the shinobi robe. He was imagining, anyway, and he didn't care to show it. "Do you know what we do with human girls in our territory?"

Sango didn't know, and she wasn't about to find out. The son of a bitch wanted a piece of her? Well, he was certainly about to get it. She took one looming step forward, eyes narrowed dangerously before she let out a yelp of pure surprise.

"Don't worry," he purred in the shell of her ear as he hoisted her up from the ground and over his shoulder. Damn, but he was quick. "I'll make sure you enjoy it. Until I eat you, anyway." He slipped a hand up into the folds of her robe, grazing over the softness of her thighs, and Sango drew a sharp breath at his nerve. "Mmm, yes. I'll rather enjoy you."

Like Hell. The demon slayer took her forearm straight across his throat, tearing into the flesh with her blade as though it were nothing more than butter. The demon gurgled and stumbled, blood spattering across the floor and painting the exterminator in a deep, sticky crimson as he fell. Perhaps she'd been too kind, she thought, disgusted as she disentangled herself from the demon's remains. He never even knew what hit him.

"You're all right, ya are, lass?" Jin inquired, pulling a smaller youkai off his back as he sent another sailing with a vicious right hook. Beside them, Kirara pawed at yet another like a cat toy. Gods, but they were everywhere! "A wee bit covered up, I was."

She shook her head, breathless but prepared to take on the next, though she never got the chance.

"Hiei!" Kurama cried over the cracking of his whip. "Now!"

The fire apparition nodded once in acknowledgment, sheathing his blade with a grunt. Before she could even process the situation, he was dragging the demon slayer by her wrist as fast as her human feet would carry her through the back exit.

"Hiei!" she snapped, indignant as she planted her heels in the ground just outside the entrance. It made little difference, he drug her anyway. "What the hell are you doing?"

He turned, eyes blazing beneath the cowl of the robe. "They'll keep coming so long as you're in there," he intoned, yanking the hood back over her head. "Word travels quickly in the demon city, I can assure you."

"But—"

"They'll catch up," he responded, anticipating her question. "Let's go."

She wasn't at all satisfied with the answer. Stubbornly, she began to struggle against him, wriggling like a worm on a hook to free herself. "Wait," she argued through clenched teeth. "There's—"

"No reason we should still be standing here?" he finished irritably. "I agree." The fire apparition exhaled in impatience, hauling the girl up over his shoulder as he took off down the alley. He didn't have time for this.

"Put me down, you ass!" she shouted, thumping him on the back with her tiny fist. Honestly, why did they always think they could just manhandle her like that?!

"Quiet, fool," he growled, frustrated. As if he wouldn't rather be in there fighting than lugging her around. Seriously. "You'll bring every demon in Akuma like that."

Sango fumed. He had a point, whether she liked it or not. She ceased her squirming, crossing her arms to support herself over his shoulder with a huff. "Fine," she grumbled, turning just enough to get a side view of the fire apparition's face. "You know you _could_ go ahead and put me down. I'll come peacefully."

He cast a skeptical glance in her direction, and Sango could have sworn she saw the beginnings of that trademark, condescending smirk settle on his lips.

Naturally, her request was ignored.

* * *

Of all the humans he'd ever known, she was one of the very, very few that had ever managed to surprise him. Yusuke and his own human mother had been the other two, not that Kurama was counting. But there she was, sitting quietly in the floor of Chu's den, cleaning her blades with smooth precision and not so much as a dirty look when he returned. He'd expected her to be angry, and truthfully, he wouldn't have blamed her, but she simply nodded in quiet acknowledgment as he and Touya entered the room, the last to make it to the rendezvous.

Interesting. That was twice now—not that Kurama was counting.

He looked to the girl's bare feet and noticed the blood seeping around the ankle of her leggings. Kurama drew his brow in concern.

"You're hurt," he stated quietly, squatting next to her in the floor though he couldn't testify to the cleanliness of Chu's abode and questioned the wisdom of such a decision.

"I'm not bleeding to death, and I haven't been poisoned," she replied distractedly, bringing the hilt of her wakizashi to meet her eye and examining down the length of the blade. "So, it can wait. The weapons come first."

Sango ignored the deep, throaty chuckle from above them. "A girl after me own heart, there love," Chu said, smiling. He flopped down onto the ugly, lime green couch in the middle of the room and cracked open the bottle of firewater he'd pilfered from the bartender as they made their escape.

"There's a shower right through those doors, Sheila," the demon continued, taking a healthy swig and relishing in the warmth that settled into his stomach. "You're welcome to clean up a bit when you get done."

It wasn't a bad idea, Kurama thought. Aside from the spray of blood smeared down her neck and tangled in her hair, she needed to clean the wound on her leg before it began to clot too badly.

Besides, he thought, glancing over their party of miscreant soldiers and noticing she wasn't alone in her state of disarray, they could all use a good shower.

A not-quite smile settled on the demon slayer's lips. "I suppose I could use it," she said as she finished her ministrations and set her last blade carefully with the others. Neatly, she folded the polishing cloth and set it, too, aside. "Thank you."

She stood, hissing at the additional pressure on her injured leg, and Kurama couldn't help but wonder just how she was making it at all. It had only been a matter of days since she was laid out at death's door in Genkai's temple. She shouldn't have been able to travel as well as she had, though he supposed her body was used to such abuses. Still, it amazed him, the power of human resolve.

Sango limped slightly as she made her way to her pack and rummaged around for the toiletries Kagome had given her. She startled when a fuzzy pink towel and robe thrust into her line of sight, and she looked up to find Jin grinning down at her.

"Ere ya go, lass," he said. "Found 'em in ol' Chu's closet, I did. Tho' methinks it a wee bit girly for him, I do."

The demon in question nearly choked on his drink. "Who the hell told you to just go diggin' around in me stuff?" Chu sputtered. "Not that it's any of your business anywho, mate, but Koto left 'em here."

Jin laughed, ears wiggling. "The announcer girl that wouldn'a give ya the time o' day? Oh, I bet she did, boy-o!

Sango slipped away, and Hiei let out a long-suffering sigh as Chu took a half-hearted swing at the wind master, failing miserably. He flopped back on the couch, a little too drunk to pursue the matter, and Hiei rolled his eyes impatiently.

"I have my doubts we're going to find any information of interest from this fool," the fire apparition said irritably.

"Information's a two-way street, mate," Chu spoke, suddenly very serious. "You blokes tell me how you ended up with a human girl in Makai, and maybe then I'll be a little more likely to start sharing."

* * *

The demon slayer made a face of discomfort as she peeled the leg of her uniform away from the deep, angry gashes along her calf muscle. Damn, she thought holding up the tattered remnant of her pant leg with a frown. She'd just gotten that.

A gift from Koenma, as it were. There hadn't been much left of her own battle-wear, and while she preferred the comfort of her own skin, the armor spirit world bestowed upon her was a suitable replacement. Naturally, her tribe's ornamentation and insignia were absent, but all in all, it was rather close in appearance, and Sango decided she couldn't have done any better if she'd had to fashion one herself.

She'd have to sew this one up now. Gods, but she hated to sew.

The exterminator eased out of the last of her clothing and stepped into the shower. Now, she thought, studying the nozzle with some caution, if she could just remember how this went. It couldn't be much different than the one they showed her at Genkai's. If she moved it to the left, the water should be warm. If she moved it just a little to the right, the water should be—

"_Cold_!​" she shrieked as the spray of ice hit her back in a frigid gale. The exterminator hopped around like a wounded pup, fussing with the knob and showerhead until finally, mercifully, the water transitioned to a tolerable temperature. Kami, but she hated this modern age crap!

"Ya alright, girl?" came the familiar, if muffled, Irish lilt from the other side of the door. "Heards a bit of a squeak, I did."

She did _not_ squeak, Sango thought irritably, flushing slightly as she realized they'd heard her. "I'm fine," she called over the thundering spray in her ears. She had to admit, it might be a pain in the ass, but this shower business was quicker and easier than piddling around in the hot springs all day. "I just had a bit of trouble getting the shower started."

"Well now," the demon's voice cleared noticeably, and Sango peered around the curtain to find Jin with his head poked through the door. "Glad to be helpin' ya with it, I would," he offered, ears wiggling and blue eyes dancing with merriment. "Matter o' fact, Love, I could use a shower m'self. Be sharin' we could, couldn't we just? Like killin' two birds with one stone, says I."

Jin had just enough time to get the door closed before the sound of a heavy thwack rocked the wood from the other side, rattling the door on its hinges. "Just a suggestion, lass," the wind apparition chuckled, shaking his head in mirth as he made his return to the den.

"I'd watch it with that one, mate," Chu advised as he poured himself another drink. "She'll chew you up and spit ya out."

"Aye," the demon grinned wistfully, "but what a way ta go, lad. A right little spitfire, isn't she just? What I wouldn'a give ta get a piece a—"

"Hold your tongue, shinobi," the fire apparition growled from his place on the windowsill, drawing a number of surprised looks, none of which he bothered to return, though Touya, he noticed, was looking particularly smug. He sincerely hoped the over-confident bastard didn't think he'd forgotten about that little incident in the forest. Hiei was rather skilled in the art of torture, after all; he'd hate to lose practice. "The last thing we need is your hormones getting in the way of our objective. You're no good to us like that."

It was explanation enough to Jin and Chu, though Hiei didn't miss the question burning in Kurama's deep, emerald eyes, and Touya looked remarkably like the cat that had eaten the canary. Hn. Fools.

"Ah, it just be a bit o' fun, man," Jin remarked, unconcerned, as he snagged the bottle from Chu to pour a drink of his own. "Here," he said, replacing the cap and tossing it to Hiei. "Ya ought have a drink, boy-o.

"Wee bugger's pinched up tight as a well-digger's ass," he muttered quietly to the blue-haired demon beside him, though Hiei had no trouble hearing.

He rolled his eyes in annoyance but accepted the drink, letting the warmth of it seep into his belly, easing the tension in his muscles. He tossed it back, satisfied with his fill. Too bad he couldn't say the same for Chu.

The gin blossom had already set in force on his nose, and the apparition choked down another healthy swig, belching as he finished. "So you mean to tell me that at least a part of the Shikon Jewel is here, in Makai? And these…_specialists_ Koenma's got lookin' for it—she's one of 'em?" he asked Kurama, resuming their previous conversation.

"She is," the fox replied carefully. He didn't want to give away too much of their information, especially since he, himself, had acquired most of it second-hand. In truth, the demon slayer had told him nothing of herself or the past she'd come from. Anything he knew about their strange little group was obtained from Miroku and their negotiations with Koenma. In his own mind he'd drawn some conclusions, of course, and he was reasonably certain they were correct; however, Kurama could only speculate on the reasons each party was involved, or how.

Not to mention the fact that he wasn't about to offer up any more about the Shikon Jewel than he just had to.

The demon looked pensive, brow drawn in concentration as he thought aloud. "Always thought it never existed," Chu mumbled, rubbing his chin. "Hm. Wonder if that's what's got the mezzies all worked up, lately…"

"How long ago, mate?" Chu redirected to Kurama, once again.

"Koenma brought the matter to our attention one week ago."

The demon looked troubled, and Kurama set him under the weight of his piercing green gaze, making Chu slightly uncomfortable despite his natural disposition to not give a damn. He shrugged, inching up in his seat to sit a little straighter.

"Just doesn't make sense, is all," Chu explained, his tone grave. "Akuma's been stark-ravin' mad the last couple a months. Not just the standard breed of crazy, either."

"It's been setting in all over the demon world, for far longer than rumor of the Shikon Jewel," Touya chimed in. "Even the most primitive youkai are restless and venturing from their own territories. Many of the packs in the eastern provinces are starving from what I understand."

"Aye lad," the wind master agreed. "It be a foul smellin' air driftin' through the demon lands. Can feel it in the winds, like a plague."

Anyone else would have missed it, but Hiei could see the pensive undercurrent in the shine of the kitsune's eyes. It belied the carefully neutral expression written in the lines of his face, and he knew their thoughts were the same.

'_Rather convenient to have spirit world forces divided in the midst of things,'_ the fire apparition thought darkly, his mind brushing the surface Kurama's own thought.

'_Indeed.'_

The soft click of the bathroom door ceased any further conversation on the matter, and for a moment, Hiei thought someone was going to have to restrain Jin. The demon slayer emerged wrapped in the fluffy pink robe, hair spun up in the towel the wind apparition had given her. The soft folds of fabric parted ever so slightly as she stepped, revealing the slightest glimpse of skin above the knee and the slope of her inner thigh, though the girl was in no way indecent.

One would never know it by the look on the wind master's face. Disgusting really, the way he ogled her. Hiei clamped down on the annoyance he felt bubble up in his throat. Whatever; it wasn't his business. So long as the wind master stayed out of his way and made himself useful, he didn't give a damn what kind of fool he made himself with the girl. Really.

Sango sighed as she eased into the oversized papa-san at the edge of the den, nearest the front entrance, careful not to cross her legs over the newly wound gauze and medical tape along her calf.

"I'm finished if anyone else needs to wash up," she said, unwinding the coil of her damp hair from the towel.

Kurama stood, glancing at the others out of the corner of his eye. "If no one else minds…"

"Have at it, mate," Chu spoke, speech slurring a bit more than it had just a few minutes before. The demon poured himself another, handing the bottle to Jin as he finished. "We gots plenty here to keep us busy."

That's what Kurama worried about. He turned, rifling through his pack for a change of clothing. Finding all he needed, the fox slipped out of the room, catching Hiei's eye with clear intention as he did.

He got the message loud and clear. _Make certain they behave._

That might be easier said than done, he realized. The exterminator had her legs drawn up to rest on the edge of the circular chair, raking her fingers through the long, dark tresses hanging about her shoulders. It was harmless enough, but Jin was having difficult time focusing on anything but the girl.

Human though she was, Hiei could understand. There was something softer about her, there—something almost…

The fire apparition blanched, refusing to follow the thought to its conclusion. Gods, he'd been around these idiots too long; he was starting to think like them.

"A drink for ya, lass?" the wind master asked, politely extending her the bottle with a smile. "Take a bit o' the edge off the day, it will."

"I'm not certain that's wise," Touya interjected. "You don't know what demon alcohol will do to a human body."

"Ah, a little won't hurt none, says I," Jin replied, brushing him off.

"It's okay," the girl replied, stroking the sleeping kitten at her side behind the ears. "I wouldn't care for any, thank you."

"Probably for the best, Love," Chu said, snagging the bottle back from Jin. His deep blue eyes stood out in stark contrast from the thin, aqua markings across his nose, and he hiccupped as he spoke. "Doubt you could handle it, anyway."

Sango tensed up from head to toe, and cocked an interrogative brow in his direction. "What is that supposed to mean?" she asked stiffly.

Her pride caught him off guard, and the demon tripped over himself in his response. "I meant no offense, Sheila," he slurred, raising his hands in a placating gesture. "It's just, you're such a lil' thing…"

Chu trailed off as she set him under the weight of her steely-eyed glare. "What I meant to say was…"

Sango stood and held out her hand in demand. The demon made no attempt to keep it from her, and he watched in awe as she snatched the bottle and turned it up, not bothering to get a glass as she gulped down enough firewater to wipe any of them, with the exception of perhaps himself, out.

Hiei could already feel the headache coming on.

* * *

Shippou sighed, watching lightning roll across the cloudscape, an electric symphony in the ruddy vapor of evening. It was raining, as it always seemed to be since their arrival in Spirit World, and he glanced over his shoulder from the edge of the cavernous dip they found as shelter in the mountainside. The fire was still going, thankfully. Most of the wood they could find was soaked, and the kitsune wasn't certain he could get one going again should this one die out.

He might not mind so much, but she needed to stay warm.

He eyed the sleeping reaper with curiosity. She'd been quiet most of the day, incapable of little more than sobs and brief smatterings of incoherent babble. Even now, she was fitful, whimpering in her unconsciousness as she rolled into a ball, buried in Kuwabara's side.

He was awake, the fox could tell, though his eyes were closed. "You need a break?" Shippou whispered. "I don't care to lay with her."

"I'm fine," he spoke softly, not bothering to open his eyes. "Don't worry about it."

"Don't give me that crap, Kuwabara," Shippou replied. "Get up and get something to eat. Stretch out. She'll be fine."

His lids fluttered open, and Shippou knew it had been the wrong choice of words. No matter what happened from this point, Botan wasn't going to be fine and they both knew it. The fact that she had emerged from the catatonic void was miracle enough in itself.

Still, Kuwabara didn't take it to heart. He sighed, gently slipping his arm from behind the reaper's head and sitting upright. "I could stand to use the restroom," he whispered, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "I've been about to piss myself for the last hour."

The boy excused himself from the immediate vicinity, and Shippou chuckled, shaking his head. Something else, that one was. He eased his way to the ground, wrapping the warmth of his energy carefully around the girl as he slipped his arm beneath her head in a makeshift pillow.

"She was right, you know," came the deep, throaty voice from the shadows. The monk stepped forward to the edge of the cave, letting the sky cast fire along his features, the dark blue of his eyes gleaming in its embers. "We don't belong here."

The fox quirked a brow in inquisition but said nothing.

"I can feel it," the monk husked, staring out into the night. "Look at this place, Shippou. The storms, the beasts, the perpetual unrest…we're doing this. We're tearing Spirit World apart."

"How can you be so sure?" he asked, cold creeping into the pit of his stomach.

"Because Spirit World is tearing us apart." Miroku turned, his gaze ominous in the sky as it thundered around him, erupting in showers of blue spark.

He'd never be able to say how or why, but in that moment, Shippou knew. Sooner or later, he would have to kill him.

The fox swallowed past the desert in his throat. "I don't follow," he replied distractedly, unconsciously drawing Botan further into his embrace.

"Don't lie," the monk intoned. "The kazaana is closing."

There it was, dropped into his lap like an atom bomb, and Shippou gaped like a landed trout. "Wha…but…how…?"

"It's smaller," he said, suddenly very tired. The holy man flexed his delinquent hand, studying the cloth-covered palm beneath the beads. "I wasn't certain at first, but I can feel it now. The wind tunnel is closing, but the hollow still spreads.

"Here," Miroku added, drawing his hand to rest on his heart. "It's eating away at my soul."

Shippou swallowed hard. "We can return to the living world."

"No we can't," the houshi said, resigned to whatever fate would befall. "Someone has to do it; the others are not so well equipped." He sighed, rubbing his temples as he went to rest again, in the shadows, as though the words were never spoken. "Things are going to be different soon, Shippou. Very different."

* * *

Shizuru paused as she swept the pile of hair from the floor to light a cigarette. Her 10:15 would be here soon and she wanted to get another in beforehand. She stooped, brushing the pile into a dustpan before dropping it into the trash, making a face as she pulled a clump off her own clothing.

Oh well. It wasn't the most glamorous job, but it helped pay the bills.

She sighed, dropping her combs in Marvecide to sterilize them, as she reset her area and fluffed out her capes. She had so many things she'd really rather be doing right now. Not that she just hated her job or anything; she actually liked cutting hair, and even the really bitchy customers she could usually deal with.

Right now, she just had more important things on her mind—like her brother. Oh, and there was that whole impending apocalypse Shizuru was about 99 percent sure was coming. She scowled, snuffing out her smoke and lighting another. Really, this spirit awareness bullshit was more trouble than it was worth. If she had her choice in the matter, she'd rather just not know. Ignorance, as they say after all, is bliss.

The tiny bell above the door jangled obnoxiously, and Shizuru put out her cigarette. 10:15, right on time.

"Have a seat, kid," Shizuru said, gesturing to her chair and pulling a cape down from the hook on the wall she kept them on. "We doing the same thing as usual?"

"I think I might like just a little more body up top," the girl responded, flopping down into the chair and holding the hair up around her neck for Shizuru to clasp the cape and spread it over her lap. Shizuru turned slightly to allow another girl access to the vacant chair at her left. A friend, she assumed. Seemed like they were together the last time they came in, too.

They chattered happily as Shizuru set to work with her spritzer. She inhaled slowly, thankful that at least they weren't talking to her. She could handle most of the gossip that came through this place so long as she didn't have to take part in it.

"No way," the girl to her left gasped. "Are you sure?"

"Positive," her appointment replied. "I talked to her myself."

Shizuru resisted the urge to roll her eyes as she started snipping. No telling who Johnny Football star and the Homecoming Queen were in love with this week.

"When?" the girl asked, leaning forward.

"Wednesday," the appointment—Shizuru could never remember her name…Yuki, Yumi…something like that—replied. "At that little market. My brother's got that new place down on Fuyushi Avenue. I went to visit, and like usual, he had _nothing_ in the entire house to eat."

"Well, what are you going to do?" the friend inquired, curious.

The girl sighed and shrugged, making Shizuru wish she'd quit squirming. She readjusted her scissors, only slightly entertaining the notion to cut a chunk out of her hair to teach the girl a lesson.

"I don't know," the girl exhaled heavily. "I'm just not sure how to handle this. What do you think I should do?"

"Beats me," the other girl shrugged. "I just don't get why she'd ask this of you."

"Oh, I haven't even told you the best part yet, Ayumi," she sniffed sarcastically. "She was with Yusuke Urameshi."

Shizuru went completely still, mid-snip.

"You're kidding!" Ayumi exclaimed. "That delinquent from Sarayashiki?"

"The very same."

Shizuru quirked a brow and quietly resumed her work, listening carefully. Maybe the gossip in this place was worthwhile, after all.

* * *

**A/N: So, I may be totally off base here, but I was thinking I read somewhere once that Shizuru is a hairdresser. It seemed feasible enough, so I went with it. Hope you guys enjoyed! Peace.**


	14. Chapter Fourteen

_**Chapter Fourteen**_

To say that Kurama was upset might have been something of an understatement. Sango couldn't really understand why. Honestly, if anyone should be angry here it was she.

The huntress waved her hand dismissively, ignoring the look the fox had given his fire demon companion. Who did he think he was fooling anyway, Sango thought as she threw her chips in to call. It frustrated her, really. Kurama was always so damned composed, but the demon slayer knew better. She could tell by the stone-hard glint in the lush green of his eyes. He wasn't just irritated; he was down right angry.

Oh well. Piss on him.

"Two pair," Jin grinned devilishly, locking her gaze. He just knew he had this one in the bag. "Tens and twos. Let's see ya beat it, girl."

Sango smiled, and it was slow and deliberate as she laid her cards out on the table. "Trip Jacks," she said, ignoring the groan from across the way as she swept her pool in, leaving behind only enough for the ante in the next hand. "Too bad, Jin. Lose 'em."

Chu leaned over, slinging his arm around the wind apparition's shoulders. "Jus' 'tween you and me, mate," he slurred in a whisper that absolutely everyone in the room could hear, "I don't think she's not played this before. A regular barracuda, that one."

Jin sighed, shrugging the heavy arm from his frame as he stood and loosened the strings of his waistband. Poor sucker; she already had everything else.

"The only thing you're going to lose is your fingers if you proceed," Hiei interjected, pinning the apparition down with a scalding glare and ignoring Chu's hearty guffaw from his left. Hiei had clearly expressed his marked disgust with their particular choice of entertainment, but Jin couldn't help but notice he hadn't taken his leave of them.

Rather interesting, that.

"Yes, I believe that won't be necessary, Jin," Kurama spoke quietly, his response clipped and cool. He might have been speaking to the wind master, but the fox only had eyes for one person in the room. "We've got an early day tomorrow."

The slayer leveled him with a pointed stare, not at all ready to turn in for the evening. She cocked one perfectly arched brow and tilted her head to the side, slightly. "So, go to bed," she replied, tone pleasant though there was no mistaking the slight edge of her words. "We'll be quiet."

The fox regarded her coolly, no small amount of concern worming its way into his chest. _'How much, Hiei?'_ he wondered.

'_More than enough,'_ the demon remarked, irritated. _'That ridiculous human pride will get her killed one day, fox.'_

Kurama didn't miss the irony of such a statement, though he found no amusement at the moment. There was something strange about the girl. She was certainly more at ease around them, which would have been a welcome change in any other circumstance; however, something was amiss.

Kurama lifted his hand, watching carefully as her eyes followed his every movement with precision and caution. No hazy veil, no blinking or difficulty focusing—hell, she didn't even crack a smile. Honestly, he supposed he should give her credit for her poker face, if nothing else. By all outward physical appearances, she was perfectly sober, and while Kurama didn't have a great deal of experience with humans and their behavior under the influence of demon alcohol, he knew there was a certain amount of poor coordination and outright clumsiness involved, the absence of which he found somewhat…worrisome.

"We should all retire, Sango," he tried patiently. "We have a legitimate lead, and if it should pan out, we will certainly need our strength. Not to mention the fact that you've been wounded."

The demon exterminator's gaze grew calculating, and her tone was sharp as she slapped her cards face down on the table. "I'm not a porcelain doll, Kurama," she intoned.

"No, but you are human."

The tension in the room was palpable as she exhaled sharply, pride quickly turning to ugly aggression. "It's not a disease to be human," she remarked, standing swiftly upright. "I—"

The demon slayer's eyes rolled back in her head, and she came crashing down just as quickly as she'd come up. Kurama, perhaps the only one in the room that hadn't been drinking at least somewhat, lunged, though he knew he wasn't close enough to spare her a painful collision with the ground.

It never came. The fire apparition gave an irritated snort as the girl dangled like a marionette with its strings suddenly cut, slumped forward with his arm curled around her tiny waist from behind. "Humans," he sneered, exasperated.

Kurama let loose the breath he'd held, though his tension and anger were hardly spent. The verdant glow of his eyes became a malicious gleam, unnatural and otherworldly set in his human guise, and Touya cleared his throat and excused himself from the room when the kitsune leveled his companions with the focus of his fierce, stone-faced scrutiny.

"Take her to the balcony; get her some fresh air," he told Hiei, never so much as glancing in the fire apparition's general direction. "I'll be with you in a moment."

Hiei had known Kurama long enough to know when he should not argue. This was, undoubtedly, one of those times. He lifted the girl into his arms with a snort of general annoyance and slipped from the room.

Chu shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

* * *

Sango lay against his chest like a rag doll, murmuring unintelligibly as he slipped through the doorway and into the cool evening breeze. Hiei allowed himself a moment of ease and minute contentment at the silken fingers of soft wind brushing gently across his skin, and he inhaled deeply. He'd been gone so long, he had nearly forgotten the smell of home, the taste of freedom.

His muscles unwound ever so slightly, and he suddenly found it easier to resist the temptation to drop the exterminator on her ass right where he stood. Had Kurama been in something of a better mood, he might have considered it anyway. Honestly, stupid girl. As if she wasn't enough trouble when she was sober.

He grumbled to himself and dropped to one knee, shifting her weight to settle between his legs as he lowered her to the ground and propped her body against the side of the building. He paused as he laid her head back and a river of black silk slipped through the tips of his calloused fingers. Funny, he hadn't noticed her hair was down before.

Not that it made any difference, of course, because it didn't. It was just…there was something so unusual about seeing her this way. Sango made it something of a personal mission to be nearly as untouchable as he was. He understood, actually. It was one of the very few things Hiei felt they could agree upon.

Each betrayal, after all, begins with trust.

He might have gained a deeper appreciation for keeping allies in his time with the detective, but that didn't mean he was foolish enough to bring them within arm's length. It was a common thread between them, he decided. Even among her feudal comrades, the fire apparition detected an air of detachment.

To know that someone typically so cautious would allow herself vulnerability in front of those she hardly knew puzzled him. Hn. The fool. The demon slayer had let her pride blind her to the potential dangers of her situation. Hiei glanced down upon her face in the moonlight. Honestly, he could have done whatever he'd wanted to her just then…

Consumed by an uncommon curiosity, he reached out before he could think better of it and ran his fingers through the ends of her hair, studying the subtle highlights of cinnamon muted in twilight. And he couldn't help but wonder as he crouched before her, worrying the feather light wisps of dark between his thumb and forefinger, if all human girls were this soft.

Hiei went still as the dead when the fingertips closed around his wrist, and the girl hiccupped and giggled. He snapped his gaze to meet hers, unfocused and hazy though it was.

"I knew you weren't so tough," she slurred, struggling to keep both of him in her line of sight.

He straightened, though the demon remained where he was as she rolled her head back against the wall, looking down at him through the curtain of her thick, sooty lashes. "Fool," he grouched, shrugging off the heated flush that settled in his cheeks at having been caught so unaware. "You're drunk."

Sango laughed out loud. "Shhhhh," she said between breaths of laughter, gesticulating with her index finger pressed to her lips. "Don't tell Kurama."

Hiei rolled his eyes in his standard gesture of annoyance. "Something tells me he already knows," he drolled.

"Oops!" she chirped, remorseless.

He sat back with an impatient sigh, ready to move far, far away; Sango, apparently, had other ideas.

"No, n-n-n-n-no, no, no," she whispered conspiratorially. "You can't go yet," she said, catching him completely off guard when she pulled him roughly; Hiei lurched forward, bracing himself against the wall, barely managing to avoid cracking his skull against hers, though she remained oblivious. "I wanna talk to you, buddy."

"I have no desire to talk, slayer," he snapped, distinctly uncomfortable with the situation. "Release me."

She giggled again, much to his chagrin and snaked her free hand into the collar of his tunic, fisting the material to draw him closer still. "You don't fool me," she said in a light, singsong lilt that told him she knew something he obviously didn't. At least she thought she did. Regardless, the demon's patience was quickly growing thin.

Not that she noticed. Sango tapped him lightly on the nose with the tip of her finger. "You, you, ummm…you," she began but stopped mid-thought, suddenly distracted. "Gods, you smell good," she said mostly to herself, tone that of total wonder as she buried her face in his neck and inhaled deeply.

Once again, Hiei froze in place, stone cold, eyes wide in an expression of blunt, open shock. He opened his mouth to speak, voice his disgust when her breath trilled across the exposed skin of his neck, bringing his nerves screaming to life. What the hell did she think she was doing? Worse, what was he doing?

The soft click of the door echoed in his ears, and Hiei jerked back as though he'd been scalded. He was halfway across the balcony before Kurama set foot onto the patio.

"Awwww," Sango groaned, disappointed. "But you were warm."

Kurama paused in his approach, eyeing them both growing suspicion. "Perhaps, I'm interrupting something," he remarked, tone void of inflection though Hiei had known he hadn't been exempt from the fox's anger when he'd sent them out here. The insinuation of something more…inappropriate, no matter how misguided, was like throwing gasoline onto an open flame. "Tell me, Hiei, did I come at a bad time?"

"Don't be absurd, fox," he hissed in response, deliberately slowing the beat of his heart with measured precision. It would not serve him well to dwell on the matter, especially not at the moment.

The heat of the kit's stare intensified, and had he been anyone else, Hiei might have withered beneath it. "I thought you were going to watch them," Kurama said, kneeling before Sango with a cool rag in hand. She fussed, pushing his hands away awkwardly as he attempted to wipe her brow.

"I told you before we left I'd not serve as some glorified babysitter for a foolish human girl," he growled, just as irritated with the fox as he was himself, now. "She drank of her own accord, Kurama."

"And it could kill her," he snipped in return, fighting with Sango to hold her hands steady. "Shhh, shh, shh," Kurama soothed, bringing the cloth up to wipe her cheeks. "I need you to be still, Sango," he said calmly. "Will you do that for me, please?"

"Why?" the girl said in an exaggerated hush.

"You've ingested…" Whatever logical explanation he was certain to give fell short at the look in her eyes, seriousness in the deep, chocolate haze not present just moments before.

"You want me to trust you," she breathed, "but it is you that does not trust me."

The fox swallowed hard, and Hiei could feel the tension mount as he studied her in growing silence. He sighed heavily after a moment, looking away. "A valid point, Sango," he spoke softly. "My apologies."

Sango had not let the matter of their escape from the bar drop as cleanly as either of them had assumed, it appeared. Hiei resisted the urge to snort disdainfully. He knew she'd been pissed off, but now he realized, much to his utter annoyance, that it was more than that.

She was hurt. That they had not told her of their intention to remove her from the situation had it become what they deemed as necessary had been not only a staggering insult but a question of her capability and reason. Her pride as a warrior had taken a serious beating.

The sudden inclination to drink at Chu's inadvertent prodding was beginning to make much more sense.

Not that it was any less irritating. For what must have been the thousandth time, Hiei couldn't help but think she was entirely more trouble than she would ever be worth.

"Forgive me," the kitsune said politely, sincerely. "It was not my intention."

The line of tension snapped between them, and Sango sagged, appearing rather tired and small just then, but more at ease, nonetheless. She brought her hands up to touch his face, expression scrunching up in question. "Kurama," she said weakly, pushing the curtain of beautiful red hair back from his forehead gently. "Why are you so fuzzy?"

Hiei could see the corners of his mouth relax subtly and thought he might have actually smiled then had he not been so angry with the rest of them. "We're going to fix that," he said softly, pulling some sort of clove from the pouch at his side. "Here," he said, holding it up to her lips patiently. "Eat this."

Sango did as the fox requested, and Hiei watched with growing irritation as Kurama fawned. "She's not a child," Hiei groused, inexplicably perturbed at the repartee between his teammate and the slayer. "You do the girl no service by coddling her, Kurama."

"And you do none in your indifference," Kurama growled, whipping around to face the apparition head on, brilliant green eyes alight with incandescent rage. It was the first time Hiei had seen the fox come anywhere close to losing control of his legendary composure, and he knew, then, there was something more brewing beneath the surface than human girls and demon alcohol.

Kurama sighed heavily, turning his back to the fire apparition dismissively. "She'll be very ill, soon. We will need to watch her closely tonight."

His participation, Hiei noticed, was not up for debate.

* * *

"Have you lost your fucking mind?!" Inuyasha cried. "You're the one who didn't want to go, Kagome! What if Naraku finds them?"

It was getting to be a tired argument between them at this point, Genkai noticed. Kagome had returned from the market with Yusuke two days prior, somewhat subdued. She was quiet—distracted, even. Genkai supposed she could understand. The dimwit had informed them of their surprise encounter with Yuka, and the psychic had no doubt that the girl's family weighed heavily on her mind.

She cast a sidelong glance toward her former student and couldn't help but wonder if it was somehow contagious. While she would normally welcome a quieter temperament where the young detective was concerned, Yusuke, like Kagome, had been preoccupied with something. Genkai got the distinct impression, however, it was not for the same reasons. The fact that he made it a point to avoid being alone with the priestess for more than a millisecond confirmed her uneasy suspicions.

It was a good thing Inuyasha was blind, Genkai thought, if only temporarily.

Things would only get complicated if matters of the heart were involved. She would have to make it a point to remind her young pupil of such when circumstances allowed. They had more pressing issues at the moment.

"They're looking for me, Inuyasha," she replied softly, brushing the thick silver muss of his hair from his sightless eyes. When he hadn't healed completely after the first day, the half-demon had finally consented to let Genkai take a crack at it, though it had done little good. Inuyasha had never once questioned the benefits of his heightened senses, and often cursed his monthly human vulnerability, wondering how anyone could stand to live with such a handicap day in and out. The drawbacks to such an advantage were decidedly more painful to bear, however.

His condition had only made him more irritable and difficult to tolerate, as well. He was recuperating, though the process was far slower than a typical surface wound would have been. Kagome had seemed to understand better than any of them, and the situation helped establish a tentative mend in the chasm that had formed between them in the wake of their argument, though it was a fragile one.

"I've thought about it, and I think if we're careful, it'll be okay," she implored. "I just need to let them know I'm okay."

"Why can't you just ring them on that phone thing?"

"They need to _see_ me," she said as though it were obvious. "They need to know no one is playing with them and that I haven't been pressured into anything."

"Well, it's a stupid idea," he said, crossing his arms with a huff. "You're not going, and that's final."

Genkai knew what the problem was whether Kagome did or not. In the state he was in, Inuyasha wouldn't be able to defend her, or so he thought. It was flawed logic, of course; some of the strongest warriors she had ever known were blind. Still, so long as he couldn't see, Inuyasha wouldn't be leaving their room, she knew. No sense wasting energy pushing a rope.

That didn't seem to matter to Kagome, just then. Her gaze sharpened, sending the ocean of her eyes into turmoil, and her cheeks flushed in anger. "You," she said sharply, though her voice remained quiet, "don't get to tell me what I can and can't do anymore, Inuyasha. We're not in the Feudal era. This is my home, my city. And I will go anywhere I please in it."

It startled him, both her response and the quiet fury he felt there in her voice, Genkai could tell. Something more had shifted between them in the last few days than he had realized, and the psychic suddenly felt the need to diffuse the bomb set between them.

"Yusuke will accompany her," she piped up, drawing a startled look from both the detective and the priestess. _'Bingo,'_ she thought, congratulating herself for her perception. Now that she had identified the problem with a fair amount of certainty, she could deal with it accordingly. "She'll be safe with him."

"Wait just a damn minute," the hanyou began in simultaneous succession with Yusuke's, "Now, just hold on, Grandma!" response.

Genkai raised a questioning eyebrow, cutting any further remark Yusuke might have made off at the knees. "The Higurashi family draws far too much attention to themselves by actively searching for her," Genkai spoke as though it were the only logical conclusion to reach. "Your absence, Kagome," she gestured with a nod in her direction, "is as dangerous as your presence."

Inuyasha either agreed or he felt the intimidating stare leveled in his direction, for his loud use of expletives dropped to a minimum, and Genkai thought she might have heard his rough acquiescence of "fine" as he bitched under his breath.

"Good, now that that's settled," she concluded, smiling. "The two of you will set out in the morning; it's too late to try and take the long way, tonight, and you'll have to if you don't want to be seen.

"And as for you…" she directed her attention to Inuyasha and reached out to pull him up by the ear.

"Ow, ow, ow," he yelped. "What the fuck, lady?"

"You're coming with me, slacker," she informed him, dragging him toward the front door. "In all my life I've never seen a more sense-dumb demon."

"Hey!"

"Tell me I'm wrong, idiot," the old psychic chided. "You've got the nose and ears of a superior being, but you're hobbling around here like some kind of gimp because you can't see. Well, it's time to suck it up. You've got everything you need to see without your eyes, and you're going to learn to right now."

"Wait, where are you going?" Kagome called after her, poking her head out the door as she watched her drag Inuyasha down the landing.

"The roof," she answered. "We're going to see if dogs can fly."

Kagome's eyes widened considerably, and Yusuke rushed past her, laughing as he made to follow. He wasn't _about_ to miss this.

* * *

Shippou tried ease the vice in his chest as he stepped to the water's edge, holding the tiny wooden vessel steady as Kuwabara stepped inside and turned to take the reaper's hand, gently guiding her to follow suit. It was quiet but for the steady hiss of rain as it fell from the clouds, bruised and swollen in the sky. Shippou supposed he should be thankful for the momentary peace but found it hollow and cold as the water that clung to his hair and slipped down the path of his spine, chilling him through as it seeped through his clothing.

He hated this place—hated the empty shadow eating away at them.

He glanced at Miroku surreptitiously, taking note of the sickly gray pallid settling into his skin, the inky void growing in eyes too bright from exhaustion. He'd been changing these last days in more than just appearance. Shippou had known something was wrong for days before, had seen the monk a million miles on the horizon, a restless discontent seeping in on him. After their talk on the mountain, when Miroku had told him the wind tunnel was sealing, it had become more pronounced.

The fox found himself strategizing more and more on his own, and it was he alone that brought them down the mountain to the next cycle of the river Styx. Miroku had been uncharacteristically detached. The monk rarely slept as of late, and he spoke even less. More than once Shippou had wondered if the wind tunnel had already taken him inside, leaving the golem in his stead.

And for what? Thus far they had nothing—_nothing_—save bloodshed and horror, and Shippou felt dark resentment for Reikai and its prince, bitter and shrill in the thick of his throat.

He shook his head in disgust, doing his best to rid the darkness in his mind as he shoved the boat forward into deeper waters, jumping in swiftly as it left the shore. Kuwabara eased the oar from Botan's unsteady grip and passed it to him in silence. Taking another from beneath the plank seats, the young detective's assistant slipped the flat beneath the surface of the water, and the kitsune matched him in fluid, even strokes.

Kuwabara had been the least affected, which was odd considering he'd had the most violent introduction into the spirit realm. Still, whatever had happened in that cave the week before had taken its toll. The young detective remained quiet and withdrawn, pouring the bulk of his time and energy into Botan's recovery, which was slow and virtually non-existent.

No amount of care was going to bring her back to herself. Botan was lost in her own mind, groping in the fog for something perpetually out of reach. He wished he could make Kuwabara understand, though he knew at least a part of him already did. Shippou was somewhat grateful for the part of him that did not. If nothing else, it gave the boy something to hold on to.

As hopeless as it seemed, however, once in a while, she would surprise him. The reaper managed to communicate with them in bits and pieces, brief smatterings that seldom made any sense; once, just moments after her emergence, really, she'd rattled off something about the Gods coming for them. The Kami were angry, she'd said, but it had only deteriorated from there.

It was frustrating, really. Fortunately, Kuwabara could get her to respond most of the time—kept her moving—and for that Shippou was thankful. He suspected the two had other ways of reading one another, as well, which was an encouraging thought. They had far too few of those.

"Faces…"

Shippou jolted from his thoughts and focused on Kuwabara, who had ceased rowing and was craning his neck over the rim of the boat, peering down into the water intently.

"What?" he asked, growing uneasy. He didn't like stopping out in the open like this.

"Faces," he murmured, gesturing down with his chin. "In the water. Look."

And indeed, there were. Twisting, writhing, screaming in silence beneath the rain-beaten surface of the river.

"Souls," Miroku offered quietly, gazing out into the hazy horizon. The monk shuddered inadvertently as the wind picked up, blowing in from a new angle and driving the rain straight into the neck of his robes. "The further we travel, the more we'll see."

Kuwabara turned to face him, fully. "No, it's not the same," he said, pointing at the dying glimmer of white lights in the sky some distance behind them, just barely visible through the fog. "They…they feel different."

Miroku turned his attention toward him, and Shippou noticed Kuwabara shift awkwardly in his seat, not entirely comfortable with the way his eyes stretched through him somehow. "Not all souls are good, Kuwabara."

The young detective blanched and looked down once more, completely unsettled.

"Let's go," Shippou prodded, tension curling in his belly. "We shouldn't linger out in the open like this."

He was right, as it turned out. Kuwabara's eyes widened in pure, unfettered terror a mere breath before the boat exploded from underneath them, lurching into the air from the force of a thunder so mighty it splintered into nothing. It had happened so quickly, no one made a sound.

Shippou felt his heart seize as they were hurled unceremoniously through the damp and heavy air, and his skin lit like hot coils when he met the surface of the water like concrete, full on. The stinging sick flooded in through his nose and burned in his throat as the river took him, down with the souls, down with the beasts of his own invention, down to the murky hell in the waters below.

* * *

Sango opened her eyes and immediately wished she hadn't. The moment the light assailed her vision she felt every tiny ache, every sickening twist and pain her body had tucked away under the blanket of sleep, scream to life. She swallowed past the wasteland in her mouth, and her stomach rolled as she choked back the bile that had risen in her throat, face scrunched in disgust. Holy hell, she thought, snapping her eyes closed once more; what had happened last night?

She shifted slightly, realizing she was clothed, though she didn't quite recall having changed into anything after she had finished showering the night before. She pried one eyelid open to glance down at herself, neatly tucked away into someone else's bed—funny, she couldn't recall having done that, either. Come to think of it, Sango couldn't remember _anything_ after she'd gotten out of the shower.

Disoriented, the demon slayer eased herself up onto her elbows…

…and promptly vomited. It was by an extreme measure of luck or strategy that the garbage can had been placed next to the bed as it was, or the demon slayer would have been cleaning Chu's floor, though she doubted it would have been the first time. Might have explained why the waste bin was positioned as it was, actually. But Sango didn't really care for the particulars as she lay draped over the edge of the bed, head pounding like her skull had split on her shoulders and face down in a tub of her own sick.

"You humans are very charming creatures, aren't you?"

Honestly, this day was just getting better and better. If she could have managed it, Sango would have crawled right under the bed and stayed there rather than face him; unfortunately, she could just muster the energy to lift her ashen face enough to see the fire apparition sitting comfortably in the windowsill above the rim of the trash can. Kirara was curled at his feet, tails swishing contentedly in her sleep.

Traitor.

"Oh don't worry," he mocked, "I'm sure Kurama will be in here to hold your hair back any moment."

Had she been able, a decent 'fuck you' would have been appropriate under the circumstances, but today she would just have to settle for a nasty look. She'd save the words for another time; Sango was certain he'd do something to deserve them again, anyway.

Hiei smirked triumphantly at her obvious discomfort and irritation. "Fool," he remarked, condescendingly, "I suppose you should remember this the next time you get the insipid notion to drown yourself in alcohol." He grinned maliciously. "I certainly will."

Of course there was no way he'd let her forget something like this, though at least she had an explanation for waking up as she did. However, the notion brought with it another alarming possibility, and Sango felt the urge to be sick once more when she sat up abruptly before she could think better of it.

The demon slayer clutched the bucket to her chest as she emptied her stomach again, heedless of her audience. She could care less at this point; chances were he'd seen more than his share of her less than stunning moments anyway. After all, there could be only one reason she did not remember dressing herself the night before. Sango flushed, resting her head against her forearm, wrapped around the top edge of the waste bin. She was fairly certain it had been Kurama to help her into her clothing, at least—not that that made her feel any better, really—but she would rather it have been him than anyone else.

Honestly. What the hell had she been thinking?

The bed shifted and Sango glanced up when she felt the brush of fingertips sweep the hair from her eyes. Her face burned as she found herself the focus of his glimmering emerald depths, a stark reminder not only of her immodesty but the fact that she'd, no doubt, made a total ass of herself.

Sango closed her gaze with a grimace, unable to look at him full on. She swallowed hard, wanting to make sure she got it right the first time.

"S…Sorry," she croaked.

He wouldn't tell her she shouldn't be, but Kurama had no intention of holding it against her. He couldn't help but feel he deserved at least part of the blame, anyway. The kitsune eased the bucket from her grip, setting it into the floor before retrieving the glass of ice water he brought in for her from the old, wooden wine cask Chu used as a makeshift nightstand.

"Here, drink this," he said quietly, placing it in her hand and physically wrapping her fingers around the base of the glass. "You're dehydrated. The more liquid we get into your system, the better you will feel."

She accepted gratefully and took a greedy pull from the glass, nearly choking on the icy flood that rushed her mouth and settled into her belly like liquid nitrogen. _Ugh…_

"Careful," Kurama admonished, making a grab for the glass before she could get a bigger drink. "You'll upset your stomach if you drink it too fast."

Duly noted.

Hiei gave a disgusted snort from his place at the window, and the fox cut him a sharp look of disapproval, though the fire apparition did little more than roll his eyes with an indifferent shrug. What the hell was he still doing here, anyway?

Whatever, Sango wasn't going to waste her energy fighting with him anymore; the little pain in the ass had goaded her for the last time. Though…she had to admit to being mildly curious. What _was_ he doing here? She eyed him inconspicuously, taking in the rumpled clothing and shadow under his eyes. He almost looked tired, now that she thought about it. Had he been up there on that window all night?

Sango refused to consider the possibility, knowing if he had, he was most likely coerced. She returned her attention to Kurama instead, nodding politely as she took the drink once more and sipped slowly, relishing in the crisp, cool that cut through the desert in her throat. It helped considerably, she noticed. The exterminator still felt like death, but after a few minutes she felt somewhat more like the walking dead, at least.

Sango exhaled in preparation, passing her glass off to Kurama as she untangled herself from the sheets and set her bare feet softly on the floor. The bandage on her leg had been redressed, and she smiled softly at the fox. "Thanks."

He nodded wordlessly in acknowledgement, and Sango shifted, making certain to keep the overly large shirt—must have been Chu's—from creeping up any higher. She flushed, thanking Kami for the fact that she had at least put on her undergarments before slipping on the robe the night before.

The demon slayer cleared her throat, forcing the color down in her cheeks. "My clothes?" she husked, voice still a little strained.

"There is no need to hurry," he replied, ignoring the sharp grunt of annoyance from the other side of the room.

She shook her head quickly, clamping down on the grimace of pain that threatened her features at the movement. "We've a long day ahead," Sango croaked.

The fox quirked a brow, wondering. "I think, perhaps, it is unwise for you to accompany us this time, Sango."

She realized it wasn't a question of her abilities so much as a concern for her well-being. It was a nice sentiment of course, but that didn't mean she had any intention of listening to him. "You do realize I've fought in worse shape than this. Many times, actually," she said, incredulous.

He appeared reluctant, and she stood slowly, continuing. "This is my bed of nails," she ventured, not entirely familiar with the phrase, though she'd heard Kagome use it before and felt reasonably certain it applied. "Let me lie in it."

Kurama looked as though he might have protested, but the fire apparition beat him to it. "Don't expect us to pick up your slack, slayer," he informed her, sternly. "If you fall behind, we will leave you there."

"Whatever you feel like you have to do," she dismissed, interrupting the reproach on Kurama's tongue, and Hiei bristled, a little put out by the fact that she wouldn't take the bait. She _always_ took the bait. "What, no witty comeback this time?" she asked dryly, looking him in the eye. She should have burst into ash at the pointed glare he gave her, but she waved him off with a tired sigh. "Don't worry," she said. "I won't trouble you with little details like my survival."

He would brood for the rest of the afternoon.

* * *

_She felt the gentle sweep of his fingertips on her brow as he leaned forward and kissed her lightly, parting her chill lips so as to have one last sweet taste._

"_I love you, Kagome."_

_She wanted to tell him she loved him, too. Wanted to make him understand just how much he meant to her right now, what it was he was really doing as he moved her to the edge of the old wooden well. _'Please,'_ she thought. _'Do this for me. For both of us.'

_He shuddered, breathing against her skin as he snapped her neck and cradled her tiny, limp form to his chest. He threw back his head and howled in abject misery, screaming his loss to the skies as he uncurled his arms and let her tumble into the darkness._

_He sank to his knees in the snow, no way of yet knowing what he set into motion. No way to comprehend when he would fling himself to the edge for one last bittersweet look what he would find._

_Nothing. The well was empty._

"Kouga!" she cried, sitting up in a cold sweat, heart fluttering in her chest like a hummingbird's wings. Kagome scanned the darkness, eyes wild, and drew an unsteady breath; the image of her dream—her memory—etched a pain so keen, so deep into her heart that it burned. Her vision began to cloud and her throat tightened like a vice. Oh Kouga…

"Hey," the detective spoke in a hush, drawing up onto his elbows to peer at her through the shadows cast at night in their room. "You okay?"

She nodded, though even in the darkness, he wasn't convinced. "I'm fine," she breathed. "I just need to use the restroom. Go back to sleep, Yusuke."

He shrugged, settling back down onto his pillow, and Kagome sighed working her way out from under the twisted sheets quietly, hoping not to wake Genkai as she did. She was tired—rightfully so—and she didn't deserve to lose any sleep because of Kagome.

The priestess padded out of the room and through the door that led to the tiny balcony outside before her knees gave out from below and she collapsed, sobs of great despair wracking her frail body. It was too much. Gods, it was too much to bear, and Kagome hiccupped and struggled to breathe around the vice in her throat, wishing she had never been the keeper of a cursed gem, had never been through that damned well.

Had never broken that jewel…had never been the destroyer of lives and worlds…

In fact, Kagome wished she had never been at all.

She jumped to her feet when she felt the hand drop down upon her shoulder, and Kagome spun to meet the deep, chestnut gaze of the spirit detective. She hushed, choking back the painful desperation trying to claw up from within.

"Hey," he whispered, reaching out tentatively to touch her cheek, sweeping his thumb out to catch a stray tear as it traveled the soft planes of her face. "What's this?"

She could hold no more, and the priestess crumbled from the inside out, the grief and self-loathing exploding as she flung herself into his chest, wailing hysterically.

Yusuke was at a loss for what to do. He had never been good with crying girls, and the spirit detective had only come out to see what was going on when he heard the door shut. As a matter of fact, he'd done his best to stay away from Kagome in the last couple of days. He didn't particularly trust himself alone with her. Something about her...gah, he didn't know! Might never know, but Yusuke could feel it just the same.

And that was the problem here, wasn't it? The way he _felt_. When he'd seen her there, hunched over and bawling her eyes out, Yusuke hadn't thought twice about it. Hell, he hadn't thought at all. He went to her. Knowing that it had probably been a mistake to do so hadn't changed anything about it as far as he was concerned now. Either way, Yusuke found he was not sorry.

Slowly, he eased his arms around her, encircling her in what warmth he had to offer. "Shhh…" he soothed, rocking back and forth and rubbing her back in soft circles. "It's okay, it'll be okay."

"No," hiccup, "it," sniffle, "won't."

He sighed, letting the smell of her hair drift into his senses. "I promise, okay," he said in quiet reassurance. "I don't know how to lose. I'm too awesome for that."

Kagome couldn't stop the snort of amusement. Leave it to Yusuke and his ego. "So humble, too," she replied, voice muffled into his shirt.

He smiled, glad to have had the desired effect. "Hey, it is what it is," he said, and as she took a step back, the detective tipped her head up, allowing himself a better view of her face, wet and soft in the moonlight. With tenderness not many would have thought him capable of, Yusuke brushed the last of her tears away. "Please, don't cry," he whispered.

The night grew suddenly still, and Kagome swallowed hard, a storm raging in the ocean of her eyes as the spell wound its way around them, making her senses hazy. His eyelids grew heavy and fluttered closed as he leaned closer, breath feathering across her lips as he closed the distance between them.

"Yusuke," she whispered absently, and he stopped short, breath coming in shallow as his shoulders slumped and he dropped his forehead to touch hers lightly.

"I know," he breathed, eyes still closed tightly. "I know."

* * *

**Whew. This was a particularly long one--about 7,000 words as is--and it would have been longer. I had about three more scenes in here, but for the purposes of reader sanity, I've determined to hold onto those until the next bit, which, should actually be out in the next couple of weeks. I've got most of it done, already. OH! Before I forget: the train of thought for the dream sequence involving Kagome and Kouga is not my original idea. This passage draws very heavily from Wheezambu's "His Woman" Kouga/Kagome one-shot. A wonderful piece of work, actually, and the fic that inspired the entire chain of events for Of Pride and Absolution. I sent her an email some years ago--whenever I first started writing on this--and asked her permission to allude to it or base another fic from it, and she gave me the thumbs up (I'm hoping she still remembers this if the question ever arises, considering the fact that it's been so long ago). So, if you're reading this little project of mine and enjoying it in the slightest, you've got Wheezambu to thank for it.  
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**Also, I feel that now is probably the time to warn you, dear reader. If you're looking for warm and fuzzies where everyone ends up safe and happy and together and healthy and all that jazz, you're looking in the wrong place. There will be character death and plenty of it. And I don't discriminate. I'll off the major players just as quickly, if not quicker, than the minor ones or villains, so be prepared for that. Things are about to take on a very dark twist. Meaning not only will I likely kill your favorite character, I'm going to fuck with them too. Some of these characters in particular are headed for terrible and heartbreaking fates; they're going to do things and be things that, chances are, some of you won't like. BUT, it'll all be worthwhile in the end. Just thought now was the time to give you all a fair heads up.**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and I want to thank each and every one of you sticking with this story. I know it's slow going, but real life takes precedence, and let's face it--it's just for fun. Nonetheless, I'd love to know what you all think, so please feed the author. Peace, all.**


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